Kissin in the Rain
by Californiapoppy5
Summary: Troy was living just going through the motions until a the new girl, Gabriella, came in and turned his life around. With her around he is more motivated then ever. There is only one thing that could tear them apart. Will they be able to keep it together or will they fall out?
1. Collision

**New story! It got idea's from like 3 songs so they're all encorporated into the story somehow. Also as i'm still writing it its 'notebook-y'. You know, like the notebook. I'm trying not to make it like that but i'm stilll in the process of writing it. It's already longer than any other of my stories. I'm so excited about that in itself. Also, I wrote this swiching off points of view every two chapters. so Troy, Troy, Gabi, Gabi.. Etc.. Anyways. Enough Rambling. I hope you enjoy the story. (:**

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_"Kissin' in the rain,_  
_Kissin' in the rain._  
_Hittin' hard like a hurricane._  
_Summer nights lit up with lightnin',_  
_So I went staring in your eyes_  
_And We didn't care a thing about the thunder_  
_While the angry sky we were under was raising cain._  
_We were kissin' in the rain."_

-Toby Keith

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**Kissin' In The Rain**

**Troy's POV**

When people don't come from a lot of money people think usually less of you. I know it isn't my fault but they try to blame you especially when you're the main topic of a small town. I'm Troy Bolton, senior at East High. My parents had me when they were in high school themselves. We never had a lot of money but we always had enough to keep a roof over our heads and food on the table. My dad was always in between jobs and my mom worked hard for what we have.

I knew I was never going to get into college, especially since we had no money and I didn't get straight A's. I was good with my hands though. I was always fixing or making something. I got paid for just enough small jobs like mowing lawns, changing oil, or tires to save up for my rusty 1985 Chevy Truck. I would help out at the pick and pull for some parts to rebuild the engine. I finished it just before my senior year started.

It was already spring of my senior year. It was that turning point where you only want to go to school enough for you to graduate. My friends Chad, Ryan, Zeke, Jason, and I would usually skip out at lunch and go down to the lake. We would drink sometimes or go finishing, depending on the day. They, of course, were the rich boys. I knew them since kindergarten, we all grew up together. They didn't care if I was rich or poor. They liked me for me and that's all I could ask for.

We were on spring break, The school set up a little carnival like they did every spring break. It was hot. I was going down to the carnival. I wore a plain white shirt and blue jeans. I dug up some cash I saved up and stuffed it in my pocket with my phone. Dad had a job this week so he was working, same as my mom. I grabbed my car keys and walked out to my truck. I got to the carnival 10 minutes later.

"What up Troy." Chad found me first and came walking over to me. We did our hand shake.

"What's up man?" I ran my hand through my hair. "Where are Ryan and Zeke?"

"Ry and Sharpay are going to be late. They had a family thing." They were Twins, came from one of the wealthiest families. They were so different. If they weren't always attached to the hip you wouldn't know they were even related. "Zeke and Jason were harassing Gabriella in the kissing booth."

I looked at him confused. "Who is Gabriella?"

"The New girl, remember Taylor and Kelsi made friends with her?" He looked at me. "Maybe that was Jason I was talking to. But anyway She's hot."

I raised my eyebrow at him. "What about Tay?" I chuckled. "Is she still rejecting you?"

He shook his head and laughed. "No. She's going to go out with me by the end of the year, watch." He had a smug smile on his face.

I just shook my head at him. "Whatever you say man." I looked around. "I'm going to get something to eat, I'll catch up with you."

He nodded and left to go find Taylor. I walked over to one of the food booths and ordered a hotdog. He handed me a number and I walked over to the other window. I felt somebody bump into me and something wet on my shirt.

"Oh my God. I'm so sorry!" The small brunette girl shrieked in front of me. "Shit. Taylor is going to kill me."

"I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." I grabbed some napkins and started to wipe the mustard off my shirt. "Gross I hate mustard."

I heard her giggle from in front of me. "I hate mustard too. It smells so bad. One time when I was six, My mom gave me a hotdog with too much mustard on it. I threw it up and never ate it again. When I smell it too much I start gaging."

I smiled at the girl who was rambling in front of me. She was very pretty. I don't think I've ever seen her before. "That is gross." I said chuckling.

She turned bright red. "I'm sorry. I just start talking then I can't stop. It's a curse I swear." She sighed and set the corndog she had down on the little counter. She put the hotdog she had in her other hand next to it. She wiped the mustard off her hand. "I'm Gabriella By the way. Gabriella Montez. Yes I'm related to John Montez, He is my father."

I just raised my eyebrows at her. "I've never heard of John Montez." I gave her a smile. "I'm Troy Bolton. Nothing special." The kid in the food booth called my number. "Excuse me." I walked over to the boy and grabbed my hotdog. I walked back over to her. "You're the new girl right?" I squeezed the ketchup onto my hotdog.

She nodded. "I am the new girl. Just moved here from California. No I don't know how to surf. Ya know everybody keeps asking me that? Its like people automatically assume that I surf or am famous since I'm from California." She watched me as I grabbed some napkins. "Only My dad's famous. He designs clothes."

"That's cool. Why did you move to the desert?" I looked over at her and watched her pick up the corndog and the hotdog. She started walking and signaled me to follow her.

"Well My mom was born and raised out here, she's taking care of my grandpa. Dad lives back in California. They just got divorced." I winced. "I know. So I am going to spend the rest of my senior year with mom then move back when I got to college. I already got accepted into UCLA."

"Great school" I commented, we walked over to Taylor, Kelsi and the rest of the gang.

"Where are you going to school?" She asked me.

I smiled at her. "I'm not." I took a bite of my hotdog. "Hey guys."

"Hey Bolton." Taylor said. "Looks like you've met Troy, He is Chad's best friend."

"Oh that's cool. Small world right?" She handed Taylor her corndog. "I literally ran into Troy which explains the mustard stain on his shirt. I'm so clumsy I swear."

"It's alright." She smiled at Gabriella. "We're just waiting for Sharpay and Ryan."

I finished eating my hotdog and threw away the wrapper. I stood next to Jason talking to him about school. I caught Gabriella staring at me. I smiled. She turned red and smiled back. She turned her attention back to Taylor. Sharpay and Ryan came walking up. Sharpay was wearing heels to a carnival. I rolled my eyes in thought.

"Let's go on the ferris wheel. We should Pair up." Taylor said walking over to Chad.

Oh-no. I thought. I saw Sharpay walking over to me but Zeke caught her before she got to me. Gabriella stood in front of me. "Want to go on the ferris wheel with me?" She smiled.

"I'd love to." I held my arm out and we walked to the Ferris wheel. "Oh I forgot to buy a ticket."

She pulled out a couple of tickets. "It's alright. I bought extra. I wanted the whole experience. I've never been to a carnival." She ripped one off and held it out to me. "This is my first time on a ferris wheel."

"You're not afraid of heights are you?" I asked her.

"Oh god no. I love roller coasters. The drop is the best part. When your heart pounds and the car throws you around. Those are always the best roller coasters." She smiled at me and put the ticket in my hand."Or the really shaky ones thank make me glad i don't have huge boobs. They would jump out of my bra and smack me in the face. I call them titty jigglers."

I burst out laughing then smiled down at her. "Well... Thank you for the ticket." She was right. She kept talking, but it wasn't annoying like most people would think. It was very cute.

We got to the front of the line and we waited for wheel to let the rest of the people off. We got on and sat down the guy locked the bar in front of us. She looked around. "This is so awesome. What number are we on? 14 I think. That's my favorite number."

"That's my basketball number, 14." I smiled at her and she put her hands on my arm.

"Why does Taylor seem a little stand offish to you?" She asked me. I'm not the only one who noticed.

"Because I don't come from money like they all do. Chad's parents are doctors. Taylor's are lawyers. Shar and Ry's parents were ancestors of the founders of Albuquerque." I explained to her. "My parents were teen parents with just enough to keep food on the table. She thinks I don't belong. But Chad and the guys don't really care."

She watched me talk, listening intently. "Well that's stupid." she said bluntly. "who care's if you have no money. You're a cool guy Troy."

I laughed. "You're pretty cool too. You talk a lot though."

She giggled. "I told you it was a curse. Seriously if I annoy you say Gabi shut up. And I will try my best." She leaned back and the seat rocked. She squealed and dug her fingernails into my arm. "Sorry. I didn't know it moved." She moved her hands. "Oh shit. Look what I did."

I looked down at my arms and saw red marks from her fingernail. "Don't worry about it. I wouldn't let you get hurt." I smiled at her.

"You are too sweet Troy." She said rubbing my arm where the marks were. "Sharpay likes you. She never stops talking about you. But Taylor said you don't like her. Is that true?"

"Shar is a cool girl But she's like my sister." I said. We were at the top now. "Look" I pointed out to the lake. "Were going there tonight for the after party."

She giggled. "It's beautiful." She leaned her head on my shoulder. "We should go there in a couple hours." She looked around the carnival. "I did mostly everything already."

"How long have you been here?" I said laughing.

She smiled at me. "I helped Taylor set up." She turned red. "So if you get bored then we can go and go do something. Can you swim in there?"

"Yeah." I said. "You are something else Gabriella Montez."

She looked up at me. "Is it a good thing?"

I nodded. "It is a great thing."

* * *

We all decided to leave a little early and we went down to the lake. Gabriella rode in my truck with me. Since we ran into each other we became inseperable. There was country music on the radio, I hummed along to The Zac Brown Band's Whatever it is.

She turned up the radio and looked at me. "Who is this?" She asked me. "I don't know any country music, except Taylor Swift."

"Zac Brown Band." I laughed. "Taylor Swift is barely country. What kind of music do you listen to?" I was afraid to ask. I knew what she would say.

"I'm open to all types actually. I know people are like I only listen to Rap music or Country music in your case. But I really like everything. I like to keep my mind and my ears open." She said smiling at me. "But I do predominately listen to rap and pop."

I nodded and smiled. "I figured." I glanced at her. "And I listen to rap and stuff around Chad because he is very picky with his music. My favorite genre is country."

"That's fair." She said. "I love this truck. Its very unique. I'm used to riding in cars. I want a truck like this one day."

"I'm sure your parents wont get you a hunk of junk like this." I said laughing. "I'm sure they'll get you a nice BMW or Range Rover."

She looked at me. "I already have a BMW. I don't drive it though." I pulled off the road and put the truck in park and looked at her like she was insane. "What? Why'd you stop?" She looked at me. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You have a BMW and you don't drive it? I would trade this peice of shit and both my arms for a BMW." I said, sitting back. She looked at me and bit her lip. "Why don't you drive it?"

"I don't have my license." She sighed. "I have an irrational fear of driving. I have really bad ADHD. Diagnosed and everything. It has toned down since I grew up but I like being a passanger. I like looking out the windows and going places without the responsibility."

I thought about it for a minute. "That makes sense. That's how I was when I first started driving I was so afraid that I was going to hit somebody and kill them or myself. But I got used to it." I started put the truck in drive and got back on the road. "I can teach you how to drive the truck."

She squealed quietly. "You can? Really? I would love to drive the truck. I want to ride in the back too. Is that legal here? Can I do that one day?"

I chuckled. "I can teach you but you have to get your license first and you can. One day when we come down to the lake I'll let you ride in the back."

"You are so awesome!" She leaned over and kissed my cheek. She sat back and sighed contently. "I think I'm going to like this place."

I smiled. "I'm glad." We pulled up to the lake and I parked next to Taylor's Mercedes. I got out and opened the tailgate. I grabbed the cooler in the back and pulled it down towards the end. I put it down on the ground. I sat on the tailgate. Gabriella went over to everybody who started walking over. I had all the beer that they bought of course. If their parents ever found them with beer they would get disowned. Especially Chad.

"Hey Bolton, how was the ride?" Taylor asked me smirking.

"It was good. Gabriella is a cool girl." I looked around. "Where's Chad?"

"Getting more beer." She stood closer to me and whispered. "She likes you."

I looked at her confused. "Why would she like me? She's only known me for like an hour and a half."

She shrugged and grabbed a beer from the cooler. She handed it to me and I opened it for her. "Beats me." I handed it back to her and she walked away.

I sighed and grabbed myself a beer and took a drink. I grabbed my fishing pole and tackle box. I walked down to my usual fishing spot and sat down, looking at the water. The lake was calm today. I saw a couple fish jumping out of the water.

I grabbed my fishing pole and held it in between my legs. I opened my tackle box and put some bait on the hook. I unraveled the line and threw it on the lake. I picked up my beer and took another drink.

"Do you ever catch anything?" I heard a voice from behind me and I jumped.

I turned and saw Gabriella. "Jesus, Gabriella you scared the shit out of me."

She giggled. "I'm sorry." She walked over to me and sat next to me on the shore. She held a beer in her hands and took a drink. "I didn't mean to scare you. You disappeared and Taylor said you would probably be finishing since Chad isn't here yet. So I found you." She was quiet for a second. "And call me Gabi or something. Not Gabriella. Reminds me of my mother." She shuttered next to me.

I laughed. "Alright Gabi." I reel the line in a little bit and set it down in a fishing pole holder on the ground in front of me. "I know when I'm not wanted and that's mostly around the girls when the guys aren't there. And Sharpay is usually all over me, all the time."

"I want you around Troy." She said smiling at me. "I've never been fishing."

"You are so sheltered." I shook my head. "Let me guess that is your first beer."

She hit my arm. "No it is not. And I'm only sheltered when it comes to rural things. Like fishing and carnivals" She started laughing. "That sounds ridiculous doesn't it."

I smiled at her. "A little bit." I looked down at the rocks and I picked one up and handed it to her. "I bet you haven't skipped a rock either."

She shook her head. "I'm afraid not. Let me see." She threw it in the water and it plopped to the bottom. I chuckled. "Show me how to do it." She looked at me.

"Fine." I picked up a flat rock and stood up. I threw the rock with a snap of my wrist and it skipped along the water 5 times. "that is how you do it Gabi."

She looked at me. "Show me how!" She stood up next to me. "What kind of rock should I use?"

I looked at her looking down at the rocks. I picked up a flat one. "You want one like this. Flat and easy to skip." She nodded and found one that was flat. " Now you don't want to throw it over hand. Side arm like this." I showed her and she copied the movement. "And finally it's all in the wrist." I threw the rock and snapped my wrist. I watched it skip on the water before sinking to the bottom.

She sighed. "Alright, flat rock, side arm, wrist." She did the movement slowly. She looked so cute when she was focused on skipping a rock along the lake. She did threw the rock and it just plunged to the bottom. "humph. Let me try this again. I'm going to get it Troy. I will." She said confidently.

"I know you can do it." I sat back down and picked up a rock. "use this one."

She held my rock in one hand and threw another rock but it sunk to the bottom again. She took a deep breath and got ready. I stood up and took a sip of my beer. She threw the flat rock and it skipped once along the water. She squealed. "I did it Troy!" She yelled, excitedly. She threw her arms around me and kicked her beer over.

I hugged her tightly and laughed. "You did it Gabi" I pulled away and ran my fingers down her arms slowly. She looked at me and bit her lip. I smiled at her and I heard the line being pulled out. I pulled away from her and grabbed my fishing pole. I pulled it to my side and reeled it in quickly.

Gabi was watching me intently. She backed away, making sure she wasn't in the way. "Did you get anything?" She asked me.

"Don't know yet." I said, reeling it in. "I haven't caught anything in months." The line came out of the water and a small fish was flopping around on the hook. I grabbed the fish and held it over to her. "Want to touch it?"

She walked over to me and touched it. "You aren't going to eat it are you?" I shook my head. "Good. Cause I will name it Wallace."

"Wallace?" I looked at her confused.

"He looks like a Wallace." She said simply. "What are you going to do with him? I want to take a picture with him!"

I laughed. "Alright. Hold on tight." I held it out to her and She put her phone in my pocket and grasped the little fish, holding onto it tightly. I wiped my hands on my pants and took her phone out. I found the camera. "Ready?" She smiled and held the fish up. "One… two.. Three." I took the picture and showed it to her.

"Looks good." I saved it and put her phone back in my pocket. She handed me back the fish and I walked over to the water and let Wallace go. He swam away happily. I walked back over to her and handed her the cell phone. "Thank you." We sat back down and she looked over at me. "I like you Troy."

I smiled at her. "I like you too Gabi. You are a great girl and you are very beautiful" Her cheeks turned red and she smiled and looked away. She was quiet while she was looking away. "Oh no, I didn't silence the chatter box did I?"

She looked back at me and giggled. "No you didn't. I can be quiet without there being anything wrong." I finished the rest of my beer and looked out on the lake. "I've never met anyone like you Troy. And that is a compliment if you were thinking otherwise." She took a deep breath. "I've overlooked so many things. I thought I've done it all."

"It's the little things that count. I mean. You have probably traveled the world and swam in every ocean." I looked at her. She was looking at my lips as I spoke. "What is living if you hadn't did the little things? Even if it is skip a rock or ride on a Ferris wheel. I'm happy you got to experience that. I hope you remember it when you go back to college and all your new friends talk about going to spend a day in New York because you can."

She smiled at me. "I'll never forget this." She leaned in and kissed my lips slowly. I was not expecting it but I leaned in and kissed her soft lips back. She pulled away slowly. "I will never forget you."

"There you guys are! Your missing the party!" Taylor yelled from above us. "Come on Gab."

"Alright, I'll be right there." Gabi yelled back. "Are you going to come back up with me?" She put her hand over mine. I turned it over and brushed a rock from the palm of her hand.

"I will in a minute." My lips were still tingling with delight. I wanted to kiss her again and again but that would be too forward of me. "But you go. I'll meet you up there."

"Alright. I'll grab you a beer so you better hurry." She stood up brushing the dirt off her jeans. "See you." She walked back up to the trail and I watched her until she disappeared.

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**Don't forget to review :)**


	2. Confrontation

**Troy's POV**

I grabbed my pole and my tackle box and the two beer bottles. I made my way back to the trail, I walked back over to my truck. I put the fishing supplies in the bed of the truck and I sat down on the tailgate. Everybody was talking or dancing to the music coming out of Chad's radio on top of his car. I saw Chad make his way over to me.

"I heard you caught a fish." Chad said, sitting next to me. "Wallace, Gabi called it. She was so excited and showed everybody the picture."

I laughed. "Yeah. You should have seen her when I actually did catch it. She is definitely something else." I found her talking to Jason. She was showing him something on her phone. I presumed it was the picture of her and the fish.

"You like her, don't you?" Chad said. I looked over at him. "I've never seen you like this before."

"What do you mean?" I asked him.

"You're usually down at the lake for hours. Taylor said she talked to you and you were happy. You've only had one beer, usually you have like 4." Chad said. I thought about it and this was all true. "I like it man. You're actually socializing again."

I laughed. "I never didn't socialize Chad."

"Not with girls. Especially the new ones." He nodded toward Gabriella.

"Gabi is not like all the other girls. She isn't afraid to talk to me. She just came up to me and talked my ear off. It was actually nice. She likes my shit truck and she said she likes me." I kept my eyes on her and she finally saw me and started walking over to us. "I like her too."

"Hey Guys." Gabi said. She picked up a beer from the cooler and popped the top off and handed it to me. "Here's your beer." She came up and sat in between us. "What are you guys talking about?"

"You." I said.

She looked at Me then at Chad. "What about me?"

"How much Troy likes you." Chad said, I shot him a look. He just smiled at me. "And how much you've already changed him."

I took a long drink of my beer. "Oh really?" She looked at me and I looked off and drank my beer. She giggled at me and turned back to Chad. "How have I changed him?"

"Well.." He started and I groaned. "He would have left the carnival a hour before we did. He would have been down at the lake for at least two more hours. He would have had 4 more beers and he doesn't really talk to Taylor unless he has to because he thinks she doesn't like him."

She turned to me. "Is this true?"

"It is actually." I took another drink of my beer. "And she doesn't like me."

"You've known her since kindergarten Troy. She is the same person, just more mature." Chad said.

"Taylor, Come here!" Gabi yelled.

"Oh no." I finished my beer. "I'm going to need another one of these." I hopped down and got myself another beer. I sat back down and opened the bottle.

Taylor walked over to us and leaned against Chad. "What's up?"

"Troy here, thinks you don't like him." Gabi said, pointing to me. "because he thinks that you don't want him around."

She sighed, "Troy…"

"This was their idea, not mine." I said defensively. I took another sip of my beer.

"I like you Troy. I've known you forever. I'm just a little disappointed with you. You stopped trying in school. All you focus on is basketball. I really think you're good enough to get a scholarship, you just need to pull your grades up or go to a community college." She walked over to me. "I remember in the 6th grade you told me you couldn't wait to get out of Albuquerque. You didn't want to end up like your parents. On this path you will be. That's why I'm so short with you because every time I think about it I want to smack you upside the head."

I let out a deep breath. I never thought about it this way. "I needed to hear that." I said quietly. "I really did." I smiled at Taylor. "You should have smacked some sense into me a long time ago." I got down and walked over to her and gave her a hug. "Thank you."

She hugged me back and smacked the side of my head. "You're welcome Bolton." She turned to Chad. "Dance with me." She dragged Chad off and they walked away.

I stood in between Gabi's legs, in front of her. "See that wasn't so bad." She said, playing with my hair. "You should really get back on track with school. I can help you. I am very smart. I know I just seem like some rich girl that only cares about her clothes. But school is so important. I want to help you with school so I will personally tutor you. Whatever classes you need."

"Gabi." I said. She looked up at me. "Shut up." I smiled at her. She giggled. I pulled her closer to me and I kissed her lips slowly. She wrapped her hand around my neck and pulled her body against her. I pulled away slowly and kept my lips on hers. "Ever since you kissed me, I just wanted to kiss you again." I admitted quietly.

She smiled at me. "Nice to see you aren't holding back." She pulled away from me and played with my hair. "You would look so hot with a Mohawk."

I laughed. "I'll keep that in mind." I moved a strand of hair out of her face.

She smiled at me. "Dance with me."

"Alright," I helped her off the truck and she led me out to the little crowd of people. "I'm not a good dancer, I should warn you."

"Stop doubting yourself Troy." She wrapped my arms around her and she moved against me slowly. I held her hips and moved against her. She pulled me closer and grinded against me. I leaned down and kissed her neck gently. She tossed her hair to the other side of her head and tilted her neck.

I pulled away from her neck and found everybody staring at us. "Everybody is staring." I said laughing.

She smiled. "Let them stare. Kiss me." We kept moving together. She locked her hands around my neck. I moved down and kissed her lips slowly. I felt her tongue move along my bottom lip. Our tongues met and danced together in my mouth. We stopped moving and I held her close to me. I honestly didn't want to let her go. She pulled away from me slowly and looked up at me.

I looked down at her. All of a sudden I was nervous. I really like this girl. I haven't really liked a girl in a long time. "I'm.. um.. Going to get my b-beer." I said. God you're so stupid. I walked away from her and back to my truck. I picked up my beer and took a long drink. I grabbed another one and opened up my truck. I picked up my phone and looked at the time. It was only 9. It was really early. I put my head on the steering wheel.

I heard the door open and somebody climbed in. I heard the door close. "Why'd you walk away from me like that?" I heard her say. She put her hand on my back.

"You scare the crap out of me." I said and looked up.

She had a small smile on her face. "Why do I scare you?"

"Because I really like you and I've known you less than twenty four hours." I leaned against the door. "The last time I like liked a girl was my freshman year and she was my first girlfriend."

She smiled at me. "That surprises me. I mean you are hot. You have the most beautiful eyes. You're a great kisser. You're nice to everybody. I can see why everybody looks at you the way they do."

"How do people look at me?" I asked her.

"They think your perfect." I raised my eyebrows. "I know you aren't and I come running after you. I think once they see that it'll make you more irresistible."

I shook my head. "Oh, Gabi."

"Anyways." She leaned her head in my lap. "Sharpay was shooting me some dirty looks after we made out. I think we almost broke a couple peoples jaws, they were almost on the ground" She was quiet for a second. She looked as if she were gathering her thoughts. "I want to do something crazy you know? Have you ever had that sudden urge to just do something crazy?"

"All the time." I played with her hair. "I just want to drive somewhere. Save up a lot of money and just drive somewhere out of state. It doesn't even matter where." She giggled. "That's as crazy as I get."

She looked up at me. "I want to like go skinny dipping or something."

I laughed. "Then go skinny dipping."

She bit her lip. "Come with me."

"I don't know." I scratched the back of my neck. "I have a feeling that somebody will take our clothes. "

"Probably." She said shrugging. "Or Zeke and Jason will come over and be all over me."

"They think your hot." I chuckled.

"Do you think I'm hot?" She said, smirking at me.

"You're alright." I said, joking with her.

She rolled her eyes. "You already told me I was hot"

"I think you are perfect." I said smiling. "You have a nice butt."

She raised her eyebrows at me. "Being bold now, huh Bolton?" I nodded. "Then let's go skinny dipping."

"Alright." I smiled at her and opened the door, grabbing my beer. She got out the other side and walked over to me. We managed to sneak away without getting noticed. I held her hand and took her down to the small dock. She took her shirt off once we got to the end. "It's going to be cold Gabi."

She pulled down her jeans and looked up at me. "I know, I'm really excited." She reached her hands back to unclasp her bra. I couldn't help but stare at her. She was absolutely beautiful. "Stop staring at me and take off your clothes. Don't make me come over there."

I smirked at her. "I don't believe you." I knew I was egging her on. She started walking toward me. "Okay, okay." I took my shirt off.

"That's what I thought." She threw her bra down next to the rest of her clothes. I took off my jeans and my boxers and quickly jumped in the cold lake water. She took off her underwear and jumped in right after me. "Shit!" She said after we both came back up. "Its fucking cold."

"I told you." I said, swimming over to her. "It's nice when you swim during the day. Not so much at night." I laughed, shivering in the water. She wrapped her arms around me, pressing her body against mine. I gulped and wrapped my shaking hands around her.

"I know I'm being forward but I am really cold." She shivered in my arms. "I trust you Troy. Even though I've only known you for a day. I think we are going to be good friends. Obviously. I mean I wouldn't be hanging on you like this if I wasn't going to be your friend."

I laughed. "I think you are the only person that could ever talk me into something like this." I rubbed her waist trying to keep the both of us warm. "Is your crazy urge satisfied?"

She giggled at me. "Yes it is. Thank you for doing this with me" She kissed my cheek. "I wouldn't have trusted any other guy, they would probably drag me away from everybody and do god knows what." I watched her lips as she spoke. "But I'm glad I'm with you. I don't really miss California since I met you. If I was back there I would probably be with my old friends and they would never do anything like this. They're more reserved. I'm usually the wild one."

I smiled. "You still are the wild one."

"I know but at least you guys do something like this not just go to the mall or to the movies of hang out on my couch and watch Food Network." She put my hair in a Mohawk as she talked. "If my dad knew what I was doing right now. He would disown me for sure. See, you look very sexy in a Mohawk."

"I can't really see." I said, looking at her.

"Well you have to just trust me on this then." She moved away from me. "I'm getting dressed. I'm freezing." She swam over to the dock and pushed her self up on the dock.

"Nice ass." I yelled at her and she put her hand behind her back and flipped me off. I pulled myself up and pulled my boxers on quickly. I looked over at Gabi who was struggling to put her skinny jeans on. I chuckled as I watched her.

Her head shot up and she smiled. "Are you laughing at me Troy Bolton?" I nodded at her and pulled my jeans on. She finally got her jeans on. She walked over to me and put my shirt on. "You should never be allowed to wear a shirt. Ever." She started to walk away holding her shirt and wearing my mustard stained shirt.

"What am I supposed to wear?" I yelled after her. She ignored me and kept on walking back. I smiled to myself and sighed. I followed her back and walked over to my truck.

"What the hell happened Bolton?" I heard Chad from behind me. "Did you and Gab hook up already?"

"Is that what she said?" I asked laughing.

He shook his head. "No, but she is wearing your shirt and she is wet, so are you. What the hell happened?" I could tell Chad was very confused.

"We just took a little swim." I said, putting my phone in my pocket. I saw Gabi's laying on the seat so I picked up hers too. "That's all." I pushed my seat up and found my basketball sweatshirt. I put it on and sprayed some cologne on it.

"Whatever you say man." He laughed a little and walked away.

I closed the truck and looked around. I found Gabi by the bonfire I sat down next to her. "You left your phone in my truck. It keeps vibrating. You are very popular." I took it out of my pocket and handed it to her.

She took the phone and looked through it. "Thank you" She smiled at me. "I like your sweatshirt. I might have to steal that too." She nudged me with her shoulder.

"You still cold?" I asked her. She nodded. "I have a blanket in my truck, I'll get it for you."

"I'll go with you." She said getting up. She walked with me over to my truck. She walked over to the passenger side and pushed up that seat. I grabbed the blanket and I looked up and saw her putting on my letterman jacket. "Why don't you wear this?"

"Chad's parent's bought that for me for Christmas. I rarely wear it because I don't want it to get ruined. So I'm trusting you not to get it dirty or messed up." I explained to her. "I don't have the money to dry clean it, and I really wanted one and they got me one. It was the best present ever."

She smiled at me. "I won't get it dirty, I promise." She pushed the seat back. "I'm leaving my phone in your Truck." She put it on the seat and smiled at me. She walked over to me as I pushed the seat back. She got in the drivers seat. "I love this truck. You have no idea."

I laughed. "Most girls hate it."

She looked at me and frowned. "You should know by now I am not like most girls." She sighed. "Everybody thinks I'm like Sharpay because my parents have money. But I'm not. God damn I'm not." Her forehead wrinkled.

I smiled at her. "You're cute when you are frustrated."

She hit my arm. "You.." She trailed off and I watched her as she tried to think of a comeback. "I got nothing." She giggled and smiled at me.

I licked my lips and held my hands out. "As much as I like to keep you to myself, I have to share you with our friends." She smiled at me and wrapped her arms around my neck, jumping on me. She stretched her legs out and I lowered her to the ground. She didn't let go of my neck. She gave me a gentle kiss and pulled away from me. She found my hand and pulled me away from the truck.

* * *

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	3. Adhesion

**Gabriella's POV**

Troy closed his truck and I grabbed his hand and pulled him away. We walked out to the fire, Taylor pulled me over to her. I sat next to her, cuddled up in Troy's jacket. I held his blanket in my lap, I opened it up and held it off the ground so it doesn't get dirty.

"So are you going to tell me what really happened now?" Taylor said, raising her eyebrow at me.

I laughed. "I told you, we went for a swim. He gave me his jacket cause I was cold." I held out the sleeve of the jacket.

Her eyes got big. "He let you wear his letterman jacket?" She let out a breath. "He really likes you Gabs. He doesn't even let anybody touch his jacket. Not even Chad and his parents bought it for him. He is very over protective of it."

"I promised him I wouldn't let it get dirty." I said laughing. "He is too sweet though." I smiled to myself, looking at the fire. I looked up to see Sharpay come wobbling over. "Holy shit, how drink is she?"

"Shit faced. Very, incredibly shit faced. She started drinking more after she saw you and Troy make out." She said, giving me a look. I just shrugged.

Sharpay sat down next to me. I knew this was not going to be good. I shifted the blanket and wrapped it around me and Troy's beloved jacket. "I can't believe he let you wear his jacket." She slurred. "You didn't steal it did you?" Her voice squeaked a little bit.

"No Sharpay, I didn't steal his jacket. He let me wear it." I said carefully.

She sucked in a breath. "He NEVER let me wear it." She pouted. "Why doesn't he like me? Why does he like you?" She gave me a stink face. "You gave him a blow job, didn't you?"

I opened my mouth to say something. "Gabi, come here." Troy called me.

"Thank you dear lord." I said getting up and Sharpay fell over. She caught herself before falling on the ground entirely. I walked over to Troy. "Thank you Troy. You are a saint."

He gave me a small smile. "She looked like she was about to puke, I had to get you out of there." He wrapped an arm around me.

"I appreciate it." I smiled up at him. "What time do you guys usually go home?"

"Whenever, Do you want to go home?" He looked at me. "I'll take you home."

I smiled at him. "We can leave later." I walked away from him and laid his blanket down on his truck bed, I got up and laid on the blanket. I really did love the truck. I looked up at the sky. It was amazing. It was partly smoky from the fire but the starts were bright and visible. You can't see the stars in California especially if you live in the city.

Troy came over to me and laid down next to me. "Why are you over here all by yourself?" He smiled at me.

"I'm so mesmerized by the sky. I've never seen anything like it." I relaxed against the back of his truck. "You can't see a sky like this in Los Angeles or San Francisco." He looked at me confused. "I travel with my dad. He has stores in both area's along with New York but he doesn't really like to travel out there. He is a California boy."

He nodded. "It's understandable." I rested my head against him and wrapped my arm around him. He wrapped his arms around me. "This feels so natural. It's hard to believe we just met. I already feel connected to you."

I smiled at him. "I feel the same way." I was actually quiet for the first time today. I closed my eyes and relaxed. There was a burst of laughter and I jumped up. I sat up. "Take me home?"

He nodded. "No problem." He scooted off and helped me get down.

"I'll be right back." I walked over to Taylor. "Troy is going to take me home." I said biting my lip.

"You better call me tomorrow!" She said, pulling me in for a hug.

"I will." I waved goodbye to everybody and walked back to Troy's truck. I watched him put the ice chest into the truck bed and he pushed it back and tired it down. He got down and closed the tailgate. "Ready?"

"Yeah, Do you have everything?" I nodded and walked over to the door and got in. I looked at my phone. I got a bunch of texts from my friends back in California. I didn't feel like replying. I put my phone in the pocket of Troy's coat.

We drove out to the main road. "You're awfully quiet." He said laughing.

I smiled. "I'm exhausted." I stuffed my hands in the pockets of his jacket. "I need my sleep so I can be a ball of energy tomorrow. What are you doing tomorrow?"

"I'm taking out the boat." He glanced at me then looked back at the road.

"You have a boat too?" I said, sitting back. "Why didn't you take it out already?"

He chuckled. "I was at the carnival all day. Tomorrow I'm going to be on the lake all day." We got to the main road and we started towards the city. "You can come, if you want to."

I smiled to myself. "Maybe I can talk Taylor into coming out again. Is Chad going to be there?"

"Yep." He stifled a yawn. "Where do you live?"

"Down the street from Sharpay." I yawned. "Stop it. Yawning is contagious."

He laughed. "So you live on Stewart?"

I nodded. "About 6 houses to the left."

"I live over on Irvine." He said. I have no idea where that is.

"Where's that?" I asked him.

"Two streets down from East High." He explained. It was quiet for a couple minutes. "So why did your mom move here of all places?"

"My Grandpa, Her dad owns Albuquerque Rocks. He's sick. She's taking things over and taking care of him." I explained. "She wanted to months ago before I started my senior year but dad wouldn't let her take me all the way out here. I thought it was only fair that I would move out here then go to college out there."

"Wait. So you're telling me you are related to Johnny 'Rocks' Dutch?" He said as we stopped at a red light.

I smiled at my grandpa's nickname. "Yep, that's my Grandpa." I looked at him. He was staring at me. "How can you know who Papa Rocks is but not John Montez?"

He laughed. "I've lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico for all of my 18 years. Can you blame me?"

I giggled. "No I guess not." Troy turned down my street and I watched all the houses go by. He stopped in front of the gate. "The code is 1014"

I watched him punch in the code and the gate opened. He drove in and parked in front of the door. He turned to me. "I had a great day."

I smiled at him. I pulled my phone out of his pocket. "I had a great day too." I took off his jacket carefully and laid it in between us. "Walk me to my door." I opened the door and got out. He walked with me over to my door. "I'm so glad I met you. You made Albuquerque tolerable."

He smiled at me. "I'm glad I can." He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me in. I wrapped my arms around his neck. He leaned down and kissed my lips slowly. I closed my eyes and leaned into him. The butterflies in my stomach were going crazy. My tongue ran along his lips, begging for entrance. He accepted and they moved naturally together.

He pulled away slowly, smiling at me. I wanted to get lost on his lips again but he stepped away from me. I let go of his neck and he held my hands. "I'll see you tomorrow." I said, smiling at him.

His thumbs grazed the top of my hands. "I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight Gabriella" He leaned in and gave me another sweet kiss. He let go of my hands and walked back to his truck.

"Goodnight Troy." I said to myself as he got into the truck. I opened the door and closed it quietly. I walked upstairs and slipped into my room. I laid on my bed and sighed in content. I couldn't help but think about Troy Bolton.

* * *

**The next day**

"Mom!" I yelled around the big empty house. "Mom?" I walked into the kitchen and saw a note on the fridge. "Spending the day with Papa, be home later. Call me if you leave. Love, Mom" I read out loud.

I dialed Taylor's number and she answered immediately. "I've been waiting for your call. How did it go?"

I smiled. "It was good. He knew who my grandpa was but not my dad, can you believe it?" I giggled.

"Yeah, Troy has never been big on material things. That's why he likes fishing." She said. "So what happened on the ride home?"

"We just talked and then he walked me to my door and kissed me." I bit my lip, remembering the feeling of his lips on mine.

"Is he a good kisser?" She asked shyly.

"Fantastic. Mmm" I giggled. "I can't get enough."

"Ew Gross, Gab." She laughed,

"Well you asked!" I sighed then thought of something "Oh! He said they were going back to the lake, taking out the boat. Do you want to go? Chad will be there."

"I don't know Gab. I have to finish the AP Lit reading." She said.

"Bring them with you, Come on Taylor please" I begged.

She sighed. "Fine, I'll pick you up at noon." She hung up and I smiled to myself.

I walked upstairs and put my bathing suit on. I put something cute on and looked at myself and smiled. I looked good. I walked down stairs and ate something quickly. I realized I hadn't eaten since the carnival yesterday.

Somebody knocked at the door. I walked over. "Hey Tay, Come in."

She walked in and looked around. "Nice house. I've always drove by here, never quite seen the inside." She looked at a picture of me and my dad. "I cannot believe you are related to John Montez."

I giggled. "He is my dad." I sat down on the couch. "You hungry?"

She shook her head and smiled. "I'm good, thank you." She sat next to me. "What'd your mom say last night when you got home?"

I shook my head. "Nothing. She was out like a light. She's a heavy sleeper."

"Is your mom like a designer too or something? This place is really fabulous." She looked at me.

"She does it on the side sometimes. It was her priority next to taking care of Papa Rocks." I smiled. "You know our parents might be friends or something since she went to east high too."

"What's her name I'll ask my mom." She pulled out her phone then looked at me.

"Katherine Dutch then but it's still Katherine Montez." I sat back. "Even though they did get a divorce. Everything was bad for a while…" I trailed off.

Taylor's phone buzzed. "Mom said they weren't friends because My mom was older but she was friends with Lucille Peterman before she moved out to LA" I looked at her confused. "Lucy is Troy's mom."

"Small world" I said. "I wonder if there is still tension." I bit my lower lip. "This is why I dislike small towns, everybody knows everybody else's dirt."

She shrugged. "Everybody get's used to it eventually." She looked at her watch. "Are you ready?"

"Yeah, I have to just get my purse and then I'll be ready." I walked to the kitchen and grabbed my phone and my purse and slung it around my shoulder. "Let's go."

I got into her car and we started driving. I texted my mom I was hanging out with Taylor. She looked over at me. "Why don't you drive?"

"It petrifies me." I said laughing a little. "I don't know why."

She laughed. "That's weird."

I shrugged. "I'm weird." I giggled. "So what's up with you and Chad?"

She looked away from me and smiled. "We're just talking."

"You like him, he likes you. What's the problem?" I sat back and looked out at the landscape.

"I don't know. I'm scared of getting hurt." She admitted shyly.

I sighed. "I think it's better to feel and get hurt then don't pursue it and regret it later." I looked at my manicured nails. "you'll never know what happens unless you try it out."

"Is that what your telling yourself about Troy?" Taylor smirked at me.

"I've known Troy for one day, you've known Chad all your life. It's different." I explained. "But I like him. I've never just met someone and automatically liked them, you know? Usually I'm really quiet around new people but with him I just blabbed his head off and I didn't stop talking." I sighed. "I literally have diarrhea of the mouth."

She laughed. "You do girl, but its alright, that's what he likes about you. His last girlfriend he had to pursue her. He threw his whole heart in it and she kicked him to the curb. That's when he kind of shut down and then his dad lost his job again and he had a series of bad events in his life. I love seeing him like this." She said quietly. "It's been a while since I've seen this side of Troy."

I was speechless to be honest. That poor boy went through so much. I sighed. We pulled up to the lake and I spotted Troy shirtless pushing the boat onto the lake. Chad was in Troy's Truck pulling the backend of the truck out of the water. He parked it close by and Taylor parked her car. I hopped out leaving my purse and phone in the car.

My flip flops clicked against my heels as I walked over to Chad. "Hey Chad." I smiled at him.

"Gabs, What's up?" He smiled at me.

"Your girl is here" I winked at him as his face lit up. "Go get her."

"Will do." He walked past me and toward Taylor.

I walked over to Troy who was standing in the water. "Hey Troy."

He jumped and looked over at me. He smiled at me. "Hey Gabi, Nice to see you." He pointed to his boat. "There she is, She's not much but she goes." I kicked off my flip flops and walked into the water. I ran my hand along the wood, studying the small rowboat. "Want to take a spin? I think Tay and Chad are a little busy" He nodded over to them.

I turned around to see them making out against Taylor's car. "Nice." I looked back at him and nodded. "Yes, I want to take a ride. How do I get on this?"

"No problem." He walked over to me and picked me up. So Hot. He set me in the boat. I set my shoes next to me and he pulled me over to the dock. He tied up the boat and got in himself. I watched him as he untied it and grabbed the paddles. "This is great arm exercise." He smiled at me.

"I bet, it's probably even more heavy with me in here." I said giggling.

He shook his head. "Not at all. You weigh practically nothing." He pushed off and started rowing smoothly. "Are you excited to graduate?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I just want to get out. In LA I had so much drama which is why I'm partially thankful I got a new start here. Even though when I told everybody my last name they flipped out but it didn't really bother me. Everybody is so down to earth here." I looked down into the water seeing all the fish flow by. "Do you think you can catch a fish twice?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I've never really thought about it. It could be possible."

I smiled at him. "You're too optimistic to be a pessimist Troy."

He looked at me confused. "What do you mean?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. You have your whole life ahead of you, I don't want to see you give up now." I played with my hands. "I've been talking to Taylor and she said that after freshman year, you just stopped trying at everything except basketball. But you deserve so much more than what you give yourself credit for." He sighed and looked away from me. "I'm sorry. I know it's not my place."

Troy shook his head. "It's alright."

I bit my lip. Me and my non-stop talking. "Are you excited to graduate?"

He pushed the rows through the water. "Sort of, I'll miss playing basketball and My friends when they go off to college but I'm ready to start my life." He pushed his fingers through his hair. "I want to get out and leave here once I save enough money."

"I can get you a job with my grandpa." I said sitting up. "I am his favorite Granddaughter."

He chuckled. "Maybe towards the end of the year." He let go of the rows and smiled at me. "We are in the exact middle of the lake."

I looked around, "How do you know that?"

"I've been on this lake so many times I've counted from all sides." He smiled shyly. "I'm weird."

I smiled. "I'm weird too." I reached my hand down and run my fingers through the water. "I love water. I love swimming. I love the ocean. I miss that the most here, the beach."

"I went to the beach once, in Florida when I went to see my grandparents. But that was when I was 10." I sat on the floor of the boat and laid down. "I like to tan out here." He joked.

"It's working" I said looking down at his muscular body. "I would lay down but I'm scared to move. I feel like I will throw off the equilibrium."

He chuckled. "Come on, you'll be fine." He sat up and pulled me down. I instantly sat down and squealed slightly as the boat rocked. He laughed.

I dug my fingernails in his arm until the boat stopped rocking. "Sorry." I smiled apologetically and rubbed his arm. I sat up slowly and took off my shirt. I took off my shorts and laid back. "Okay I think it's good."

"What the equilibrium?" He asked chuckling.

I hit his arm. "Don't make fun of me."

He wrapped his arms around me and he kissed my cheek. "But you are so cute." I smiled and bit my lip. I felt the butterflies rush through me. I looked over at him and ran my fingers through his hair. "You are beautiful Gabriella Montez."

I blushed furiously. "Thank you." I moved my hands down his face. I ran my fingers along his lips. I leaned against him and kissed his lips slowly. I shut my eyes and my lips tingled against his. It suddenly felt like we became one.

* * *

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	4. Anticipation

**Gabriella's POV**

I sat up and sat back on the bench in the boat. I grabbed the ores and started rowing around in circles. I giggled when Troy sat up and watched me with an amused face. I smiled at him and finally go the hang of it. I rowed to the other side of the lake.

"What's over here? Do you know?" I looked at the flat land.

"Nothing, a lot of snakes and scorpions, it's basically just desert over here. The other side is more human inhabited." He looked out then looked at me.

I made a face. "Did you ever get hurt over here?"

He shook his head. "No, Almost but no." I started rowing back towards the middle.

"How'd you almost get hurt?" I questioned him.

"When Chad and I were about 11, we walked around the whole lake and hung out over here for the whole day. We didn't know there were reptiles everywhere. We were just playing. But I picked up a rock and a snake was under it." I made another face. He chuckled a little bit. "But it just moved away. I was so spooked that we ran all the way back to the other side."

"That's scary. I would piss myself." I said letting go of the ores. "You were right, this is hard work."

He chuckled. "Let me do it then." He grabbed a hold of them and rowed out to another side of the lake.

I looked up to see a big lake house. "Who owns that?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I don't know. I never asked or seen anyone. We didn't really go over here since it was surrounded by stuff."

"Interesting." I said. I stretched my legs out and put my feet next to him. "I need a tan."

He chuckled. "If you say so." We found our way back into the middle of the lake again. "What are you going to study? Do you know?"

I pulled my hair up into a bun on the top of my head. "I don't know, maybe psychology. I've always liked helping people, analyzing them or maybe a sports therapy."

He made a face at me then chuckled. "Those are on two different spectrums."

I nodded. "I know, but it was just an option that I'm interested in." He nodded. "If you were going to college what would you study?"

"Business" He said sitting back at the bottom, in front of me. "I'm good at interpersonal relationships"

I nodded and giggled. "If you say so." He smiled at me and grabbed my legs, tugging at them. "We are going to flip the boat. You better stop." I said sternly. He just smiled at me and stood up on his knees.

He stopped and looked up at me. "I'm too comfortable around you." He had his hands placed on my hips. I had my legs on either side of him. I nodded in agreement. "It scares me." He admitted quietly.

"It scares me too." I replied. "I want to keep seeing you but I know it's going to suck when it comes august when I have to leave." I smiled at him. "But I already know now that I can't stay away from you."

He smiled at me. "I guess were shit out of luck either way." He sat back down and waved me over to him. I sat down in between his legs. He wrapped his arms around me. "Let's get to know each other better. We have to ask a question then we both have to answer it." I turned to look at him. "So don't ask something you aren't afraid to answer." He smiled.

"Fine. I'll go first." I laid my head on his shoulder. "When's your birthday?"

"July 7th." He put his nose against the back of his hair. "I turn 19."

"October 14" I smiled. "I turn 18" I giggled quietly.

"Did you skip a grade or something?" He asked breathlessly.

I turned and smiled back at him. "I skipped 8th grade because I was home schooled. I was already advanced so they just sent me into private school" I looked at him. "East high is the 2nd public high school I've been to."

"That is crazy." He said. "You are only 17 and a genius."

I giggled. "Yes." He wrapped his arms around me. I kissed his bicep. "I'm very mature for my age."

He laughed. "You are. What are your friends like?" He smiled. "You already know all my friends."

I nodded. "I have a group but they are mostly girls. I have one absolute best friend named Bree. Then there is Becca who is my Jesus freak. Kyla is my black friend; there is also Mandy then Asher who causes all the drama."

"There is always one." He said laughing. "Your turn."

"Favorite color?" I asked. I always have the shittiest questions. "Mine is Orange."

"Red." He said smiling.

"Of course." I giggled. "Wildcat colors."

He nodded, his cheeks burning up. "Do you like East High?"

"It's alright." I said, "Do you like East High?"

He laughed. "I don't know what it's like at any other high school."

"Do you have any siblings?" I asked him. "I'm an only child."

"I had a sister but she died when she was 3 weeks old. SIDS" He explained. "Her name was Emma." He smiled slightly.

I frowned. "I'm sorry." I turned to face him, I hugged him tightly. He hugged me back, putting his face in the crook of my neck.

"I was only 5 when she was born though." He pulled away from me and sat back down. "I don't really remember much."

"That's still hard, even if you were only 5." I rubbed his head slowly.

"GABI!" I heard someone yell. I looked up to see Taylor at shore waving her hands. "GABI! PHONE!" She yelled again.

Troy sat up as well and started rowing back to shore. A few minutes later we pulled up to the dock and Troy tied it up tightly. I stood up and he helped me out. I walked over to Taylor. "What's up?"

She handed me my phone. "Your mom called, told me to tell you to call her back."

"Thank you." I walked over to Troy's truck and sat in it. I called my mom.

_"Gabriella."_ She did not sound happy.

"Yeah mom?" I asked her.

_"Where the hell are you?"_ She sighed.

I rolled my eyes. "I told you I was with Taylor. We met some of friends down at the lake I was with one of them on a boat."

_"Who? Who are these friends?"_ She asked me.

"Taylor, Troy, and Chad." I said.

_"Boys?"_ She squeaked. _"Gabriella."_

"We were just hanging out mom." She was impossible.

_"Well I want to meet all these friends. Invite them for dinner."_ She murmured something in the background. _"Papa wants to talk to you."_

_"Hey, little girl."_ I heard him say.

"Hey Papa, how are you feeling?" I asked him biting my lip.

_"Better, I miss you. When are you coming down to see me?"_ He asked then coughed a little bit.

My heart broke I hated hearing papa like this. "Soon, I promise. I love you."

_"I love you too Ella."_ He coughed again then whispered. _"Ignore your mother, have fun with your friends."_

_"I heard that."_ I heard my mom say in the background. We all started laughing.

_"I'll let you go, but come see me soon. Bye Ella."_ He hung up the phone and I got out of the truck. I looked up to see Troy standing in front of me.

I jumped. "Shit Troy." I held my hand over my heart. "You just gave me a heart attack."

He chuckled. "I'm sorry."

I smiled. "It's alright, I was talking to my mom. She wanted to know if you wanted to come over for dinner. You and Tay and Chad."

He nodded. "Sound's good."

I walked over to Taylor and Chad and put my phone back in her car and asked them if they wanted to come over for dinner. They accepted. I looked at the time. We had a few more hours until we had to leave. Troy and Chad went fishing on the boat. Taylor and I said out on the dock.

"I hope my mom is on her best behavior tonight." I sighed, leaning back on my elbows.

"Why do you say that?" She laughed a little and looked at me.

"Cause she is crazy and over bearing." I sighed. "And she thinks her shit doesn't stink. It drives me insane."

"All moms are like that." She shrugged. "they are crazy."

I nodded. "I saw you and Chad getting cozy earlier." I nudged her with my elbow.

She blushed. "We are a couple now." I squealed. "It's official now."

"I'm so happy for you." I swung my arms around her and squeezed her.

"You and Troy are going to be next." She said eyeing me.

I shrugged. "The world may never know."

She rolled her eyes. "You two are totally going to get together. The chemistry is undeniable."

"I guess." I looked out at the boys who were coming back toward us. "Done already?" I yelled out at them.

"Fish aren't biting today." Chad said.

"I bet I can catch a fish." I said boldly. I just said it to pull his tail. I didn't know the first thing about fishing.

"Really now?" Chad tied the boat to the dock and got out.

I nodded and got up standing in front of him. "Yep." I started giggling.

"Then do it." Chad handed me a fishing pole. "Catch me a fish."

"Alright." I took the pole and got in the boat. "Come with me Troy. I need a witness."

He chuckled. "Alright." He got in the boat with me and untied the boat, pushing it off. I sat on the bench and he started rowing to the middle. "Do you even know how to fish?"

I shook my head and giggled. "I have no clue, you are going to teach me." I said smiling at him.

He raised his eyebrow. "What do I get if I teach you?"

I winked at him. "You'll see." I picked up the fishing pole and looked at him. "What do I do first?"

He stopped and picked up his tackle box and handed me some neon pellets. "You have to put the bait on the hook."

I put the neon pellet on the hook carefully. I turned to show him. "Good?" He nodded. "Now what?"

"First you have to hold down the line, then push this button and throw it without hurting yourself or me." He joked. "Would you like a demonstration?" I nodded. He took the pole from me and showed me where to place my hands. He tilted it back carefully then threw it out into the water.

He handed me the pole and I reeled it in. I put my hands where he told me to. "Okay I'm going to throw it in three" I got hands ready and he leaned back. "Two, one." I threw it out. It didn't go as far as his did but I watched it sink down. "How was that?"

"Better than Chad's first try. He almost hooked me on and then he almost fell into the water." He said laughing. He sat next to me. "You are just good at everything aren't you?"

I smirked at him. "yeah, I am." I joked looking back at the water.

He wrapped his arms around my body and kissed my shoulder. "I've never met somebody so perfect in my life." He laid his head down and ran his fingertips along my bare stomach.

I tried my hardest not to tremble. "I am not perfect." I stated just before the line started reeling out by itself. "Oh my god."

He sat up. "Unbelievable. Reel it in Gabs" I did as he said and reeled it in as fast as I could. I pulled the pole back like I'd seen him do yesterday and a tiny fish was wriggling at the end of the line. "You caught a fish!" He exclaimed.

"Oh my god." I sat again and I watched Troy grab the end of the line, taking the fish off the hook. "I can't believe I did it." He smiled at me. "Chad is going to be so mad."

"Yeah he is." Troy agreed. "Here hold him and we can go show him. Hold him tight." He handed the slippery fish to me and I held it firmly trying not to hurt it.

"Hi little guy! You must be Wallace's brother. I'm going to name you Ralph" I said to the tiny fish. I looked up at Troy who was watching me with an amused look on his face. "What?"

He chuckled and shook his head. "Nothing." We got to the dock and I climbed up on it.

"Chad." I moved the fish behind my back.

"What up Gab?" He and Taylor were walking up to us.

I smiled big. "I have a surprise for you."

He raised his eyebrow. "What's that?" I moved the fish from behind my back and showed it to him. "No Way! You didn't catch that."

Troy came beside me. "She did. It was amazing" He turned to me. "I told you that you were good at everything."

I rolled my eyes. "I want a picture Troy get my phone." He ran to get my phone and I turned back to Chad. "You jealous?"

He scoffed. "Yeah." Taylor wrapped an arm around him and giggled.

"Here" Troy said holding up my phone. "3, 2, 1" I smiled and held up the fish as he took the picture.

"Goodbye Ralph." I ran back to the dock and laid down. I placed my hands in the water and let go of the fish. I watched him swim away immediately. I got up and Chad pushed me in. "Chad!" I screamed.

Troy pushed Chad in then Taylor pushed Troy in. I giggled. Chad pulled himself on the dock and sat down. I watched Chad try to pull Taylor in but she wasn't having it. "Boo." I heard from behind me.

I whipped my head around and Troy smiled from behind me. I wrapped my arms around him. "It feels nice during the day." I laughed.

"It is." He pulled me against him and smiled. "What do I get since I taught you how to fish?"

I smiled. "nothing." He grabbed my sides and I squealed. I grabbed his hands. "Okay, no tickling. That's cheating."

He tried to pull his hands out of my grip but I just wrapped them around me. I pressed my body against him. "So what do I get?" He smiled at me, looking at me with his beautiful blue eyes.

I kissed his cheek. "Thank you."

He pouted. "That's it?"

"Such a baby." I teased. I felt his hands slide towards my waist. "Nuh-uh." I felt his fingers slide in between mine. I smiled and placed a gentle kiss on his lips.

He pulled back and smiled at me. "That's much better." He winked at me.

I rolled my eyes at him. "What time is it? Mom said dinner is early since you guys are coming over."

"A little after 3 is my guess" He pulled me closer to him, he wrapped his arms around my waist.

"What are you, psychic?" I asked him.

"Yes I am." He said matter-of-factly. "I foresee that you are going to kiss me again." He leaned down towards me. "And again." He smirked at me. "And again."

I got lost in his blue eyes. My eyes trailed down his face to his lips. I don't know what he was doing to me but I did want to kiss him again. And again. And again. I placed my lips lightly on his, giving him a soft kiss. I pulled away quickly and smiled. "You are so full of it Troy."

Troy chuckled and picked me up. "Don't deny my supernatural abilities." He threw me over his shoulder and he walked back to the dock. The lake was not deep until you got to the middle. I reached down and grabbed his firm butt. "Hey!" He jumped and almost dropped me.

I screamed and dug my nails into his sides. "Sorry. All the blood is rushing to my head." He took me off of his shoulder. I climbed up on the dock. "We should get going soon."

"You're right." He walked over to his truck and I took the things out of the small boat. The sun was hot so I dried off quickly. I put my shorts and shirt on and watch Troy back into the water.

"Can I ride in the truck bed on the way to my house?" I asked him as he untied the boat and pushed it to its holder.

"Sure. Chad!" He yelled. Chad ran to the truck and started pulling it out of the water slowly. Troy placed it perfectly on the holder. Chad pulled the boat all the way out. I walked toward the truck.

"Gab" Taylor said walking over to me. "Chad and I are going to meet you at your house in an hour, is that good?"

I nodded. "Sure." I gave her a hug. "I'll see you later." She handed me my purse and I set my things in Troy's truck. I climbed in the truck bed and watched him load everything into the truck.

Once he was finished he climbed in next to me and smiled. "Ready to go?"

"Chad and Tay said they wouldn't be there for an hour so you can drop me off and go home or something. Or I could just hang out at your house for a while. Whatever you feel comfortable with." I rambled, as he walked over to me.

"I'll call my mom to see if she's home." Troy said sitting in front of me. He pulled out his phone and waited for his mom to answer.

I got a text from my friend Bree from LA. _"Hey butt hole." _I smiled.

I replied back. _"Hey slut. Sorry I have been AWOL I've been hanging out with new friends. I can't wait for you to meet them. I met a boy…."_ She was going to kick my ass.

My phone started vibrating. Bree was calling. "Hello?" I answered quietly.

_"What do you mean you met a boy?"_ She practically yelled. _"Why didn't you tell me earlier?"_

"I only met him yesterday." I hopped off the truck trying to distance myself from Troy so he couldn't hear me talking about him.

_"What does he look like?"_ She asked. _"Send me a picture. Did he meet mom? Oh god. Does he know who your dad is?"_ Bree rambled.

"He is going to meet mom today, hopefully she isn't super bitchy. I told him who dad was but he didn't even know who he was. It was quite refreshing actually. He knew who papa rocks is." I looked at Troy who was talking on the phone. He hung up and looked at me. I smiled.

_"That is crazy! Does he live under a rock? No pun intended."_ She laughed at her own joke. I just smiled and shook my head. _"AH! I can't wait to hear more. Where are you?"_

"I'm about to leave the lake with him." I said biting my lip. "He's coming over towards me." I watched him hop off the truck.

_"Let me talk to him, what's his name?"_ She started yelling.

"Bree you are not talking to Troy" I said quietly as Troy stood next to me.

_"Oh my god He's right there isn't he."_ She was still yelling in my ear. _"Hi Troy!, I'm Gabi's best friend Bree!"_

He chuckled and looked at me. "I'll talk to you later Bree." I heard her protest. "Bye!" I hung up the phone. "I'm sorry. She gets mental sometimes."

Troy smiled at me. "It's no problem." He put an arm around me. "My mom said you can come over if you'd like She wants to meet you."

I smiled. "Alright." I climbed into the back of the truck. "I'm excited to ride back here." He got in the drivers seat and opened the window. "I think I can crawl through here if I get bored back here."

He laughed. "Alright, be careful."

I sat back as he started driving. I looked out at the lake as it got farther behind us.

* * *

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	5. Conversation

**Troy's POV**

Half way to my house Gabi started crawling back through the window. I looked at her and pulled over to the side of the road. I helped her inside and she plopped down next to me. She put her seatbelt on and put a leg under the other to get comfortable.

"That was so much fun." She said leaning back against the seat. I started driving again and she leaned against me. I wrapped an arm around her. "My best friend wanted to talk to you. She could scare anyone away. But she's my best friend and I love her." She played with my fingers as she spoke.

"There is always the one weird friend. Mine is Chad… no.. Jason. He's weird as hell." She giggled beside me as we drove down the street. "You're the weirdest girl friend I've had."

"I think Sharpay takes the cake." I said laughing. "She seems very high maintenance."

"She is. She used to make me her bitch before Zeke started offering. He likes her." I kissed Gabi's hair.

She looked at me and smirked. "So you are my bitch because you like me."

"Pretty much." I couldn't deny the truth.

"Good to know." She said giggling. "What are your parents like?"

"My mom's nice. She works a lot. Dad has bad luck he is… jobless, always in between jobs." I said slowly. "What are your parents like?"

"My mom is crazy. She is so embarrassing sometimes. She just talks and talks until you want to rip your hair out. Dad is more laid back. He has the whole artsy thing going on but he does over analyze everything." She said, looking at East High as we were passing it.

"So you get your talking from your mom and your analyzing nature from your dad." I said, turning down my street. I backed up the boat into my driveway. I turned the wheel to the right angle. "I'll be right back." I got out and opened the fence and unhooked the boat and pushed it into the side gate. I closed it and locked it up.

"Is that heavy?" Gabs asked me as I got back in the truck.

"Not really." I parked the truck into the driveway next to my mom's car. "Are you ready?"

She nodded and got out of the truck, grabbing her purse. She walked over to me and we walked to the door. I opened the door and we walked in. I watched Gabs look around. "Hey honey." My mom said walking over to me giving me a hug. "You must be Gabriella" She said hugging her tightly.

"Sorry, I forgot to warn you she is a hugger." My mom hit my arm gently. "Gabi, this is my mom Lucy."

"Hi, Mrs. Bolton, It's nice to meet you." Gabi said smiling. "Don't worry, I'm a hugger too."

My mom smiled. "I like you already. Would you like something to drink?"

She nodded. "Sure, anything is fine."

"Troy, get the girl a drink will you?" Dad said coming out from the kitchen.

"Of course. Gabi, this is my dad Jack. Dad this is Gabriella." I reluctantly walked into the kitchen and grabbed Gabi a bottle of water from the fridge I walked back into the living room and Gabi was chatting my parents up. I handed her the water.

"Thank you Troy." She said interrupting the story. "Then I turned to go get napkins and I just bumped into Troy, getting mustard all over his shirt. We share a dislike of mustard. The smell. Oh don't get me started."

My parents laughed. "Well we can talk later Troy Show her around will you. I hope you cleaned your room." Mom said walking away from us with my dad.

"My room is always clean. Come on" I grabbed Gabi's free hand and I walked her upstairs. "This was Emma's room, now it's the guest bedroom." I said quietly running my hand over the door. "This is my room." I opened the door and we walked in.

"Very manly." She said looking at the basketball posters on the wall. She sat on my bed and put her purse down. "I like your house. It's the perfect size. Mine is huge. We have 6 bedrooms. What the hell do we need 6 bedrooms for? Its my mother and me." She said giggling.

"It is nice to have space." I offered, she shrugged. I sat next to her. "I'm going to take a quick shower. Feel free to be nosy. I have nothing to hide." I said chuckling.

She smirked. "Will do." I grabbed some clothes and a towel and walked into the bathroom across the hall.

I dried off and got changed 10 minutes later. I walked out of the bathroom, hanging my towel up. I opened my bedroom door and saw Gabi looking at an old yearbook of mine. I walked in and sat down next to her. "Hey" I said, she looked up at me and smiled.

"Hey, You were so cute freshman year." She flipped to the page I was on pointing to my picture. "Chad's picture." She started giggling. "I can't even.." She busted up laughing.

I chuckled. "Yeah, he hates it." The picture lady didn't even count for him she just took it and he looked very funny.

"Oh god." She wiped the tears from her eyes and flipped to where she was before. She looked at what everybody wrote. She turned the page and there neat writing all the way down. It was from my ex- girlfriend Michaela. She looked at me. "Who is Michaela?"

"My ex-girlfriend." I said, stretching out on my bed.

"Michaela Grant…." She flipped through the yearbook and found her. "She's in one of my classes I think."

"Probably, she's really smart." I said, sitting back up.

"What happened with her?" She asked me.

I sighed. "We went towards the end of freshman year. She was really cool and everything. I really liked her. Then she broke up with me because her parents didn't like me. They thought I was just some asshole basketball player. She didn't even put up a fight."

"What a bitch." She said. "Do you still like her?"

I shook my head. "Not anymore. I finally got over her at the beginning of junior year. I gave up trying to be good enough for her and her parents."

"I hate girls like that. Who let their parents control every aspect of their life. If you want to date somebody then date them. Who cares. It's none of their business." She closed the book. "I should give Michaela Grant a piece of my mind."

I chuckled. "Don't bother." I laid back down and she laid next to me.

She wrapped her arms around me and played with my hair. "You deserve so much better than her." She said quietly.

"I have this one girl in mind." I said holding her closer to me. I ran my fingers along her waist.

"Oh really. Who could that be?" She said, making my hair into a Mohawk.

"Somebody very special." I said, smiling at her. "She just waltzed into my life and blew me away."

'Tell me more." She said, moving up so her face was in front of mine.

"Well she is very beautiful. She has long brown curly hair. Her eyes are the color of chocolate chips and she talks way too much. She is a great dancer. Her kisses are intoxicating. She is good at everything. And she is perfect." She smiled at me as I spoke. She started blushing. "But there is one thing I don't like about her."

She raised her eyebrow. "What is that?"

"I don't think she likes me the way that I like her." I said biting my bottom lip.

"If she didn't like you she would be a very stupid girl. I think I know the girl you are talking about and she is a genius. She definitely does like you the way that you like her." She said.

"She talks about me?" I asked her, raising my eyebrow.

"She doesn't stop talking remember? She told me that you never leave her mind. Since she met you she feels that she has known you her whole life. She loves the way your eyes turn different colors when your mood changes. She likes when you laugh because a friend told her you haven't been this happy in a long time. She likes making you smile." She started giggling. "She thinks you are very sexy when you take your shirt off."

I smirked at her then pushed her hair out of her face. "I really want to kiss her right now."

"She thinks you should just do it whenever you feel like it." She inched closer to my lips.

"Then I would be kissing her all the time." I touched my nose with hers and kissed her lips firmly. She wrapped her arms around my neck and deepened the kiss. I ran my hand down her leg and grabbed onto the back of her thigh. I brushed my tongue along her lip and she immediately let me in. Our tongues moved together as one. Gabi's phone started vibrating in her pocket. She groaned and pulled away.

She sat up and answered the phone. "Hey mom. We just took a pit stop at Troy's so he could get ready. Yeah, we were just about to leave." She listened. "I know I have to get ready too. Okay… OKAY MOM. Bye." She hung up the phone. "Jesus." She looked at me. "We better get going before my mother has a hernia."

I chuckled. "Alright." I put a jacket on and we walked downstairs. "Mom, We're leaving."

She came rushing in. "Oh it was so nice to meet you Gabriella, Come over anytime you'd like. I'd like to have you over for dinner." She gave Gabi another hug. "It was so nice to meet you." She said again.

Gabi giggled. "It was nice to meet you too Mrs. Bolton" She looked over at my dad. "Mr. Bolton."

"Have a nice time." Mom called after us. I started dragging Gabi away from them.

"Your mom is the cutest." She said getting into my truck.

I got in and started driving to Gabi's house. "What are you doing tomorrow?" I asked Gabi who seemed to be spacing out the window.

"Hm?" She looked over at me. "Sorry. I wasn't paying attention." She started blushing.

I chucked. "It's alright. I asked you what you were doing tomorrow." She leaned against me again.

"Not sure, I have to check with my mom." She said. I nodded. I reached over and turned up the radio. My favorite Artist Jason Aldean was playing.

I started singing along. _"Let's get this thing started, it's my kinda party."_ I glanced at her and kept singing. _"Baby if your in the mood and you could settle for a one night rodeo,"_ I put my hand on her leg. _"You can be my tan legged Juliet and I'll be your redneck Romeo."_

She started giggling. "Who is this?"

"Jason Aldean. He is my favorite. I want his new CD." I said as I turned on to her street

"You have a nice voice. A man that can sing is very sexy." I winked at her and she giggled. I pulled up to her drive and pushed in the code. "You remember?" She asked me.

"Yeah, it's your birthday." I said smiling at me.

She smiled at me. "You are amazing Troy Bolton."

I chuckled and parked. "Well that is a first."

She looked at me shocked. "You are full of it Troy. You are completely amazing." She got out of the truck and I got out after her.

I took a deep breath and walked over to Gabi. "I'm nervous. I don't have the best track record with parents."

She rolled her eyes. "come on you'll be fine." She grabbed my hand and we walked into her door. "mom I'm home."

A woman came walking over to us. "Hi sweetheart. You must be Troy." She smiled politely. "It's nice to meet you."

"It's very nice to meet you too Mrs. Montez." I shook her hand gently.

"Well I'm going to show Troy around then get ready." Gabi said, grabbing my hand and pulling me up a huge stair case. "That's moms room." She pointed to the room at the end of the hall. She walked to the opposite side of the house. "This is my room." She opened the door.

It looked empty. There was some pictures up. I sat down on her huge bed. "You weren't kidding. Your house is huge. I almost got winded going up the stairs."

She giggled. "You're telling me." She caught me looking at a picture. "Those are my friends." She walked over and picked up the picture. "We were the spice girls for spirit day in October, for homecoming." She giggled. "That's Asher, she was baby spice. Kyla, was scary of course, Bree was posh, Becca was ginger and I was sporty."

I chuckled. "That's cute." She put the picture back.

"Mandy moved up to Napa last year I only get to see her sometimes." She said sitting next to me. "I better get ready or my mom will have a cow." She picked up some things and walked into the bathroom. I laid on her bed and she came out 20 minutes later. She hung the towel up.

I sat up and watch her put her hair in a French braid. "I fell asleep for like 10 minutes." I said laughing. "Your bed is ridiculously comfortable."

"I know. It's so hard to get up in the morning sometimes." She turned to me and smiled. She looked beautiful with no make up on. "Just a little makeup and I'll be good to go."

"You don't even need it Gabs." I said watching her. "You're gorgeous."

She blushed and turned her head. "No." She walked into the bathroom and put on a little make-up. She came out. "Let's go."

I got up and she held my hand and started walking out. I pulled her back to me and kissed her lips slowly. She smiled and leaned against me. "You really don't need it." I said, kissing her forehead then walking out the door.

When we got downstairs the doorbell rang. Gabi left to get it and I walked into the kitchen. "Hey Mrs. Montez Do you need any help with anything?"

She looked over at me and smiled. "Sure, can you carry this pot to the table."

I nodded and picked it up and walked into the dining room. I set it on the table and Taylor and Chad came in. "Hey guys."

"Hey Troy." They said smiling at me.

Mrs. Montez came in the room with the rest of the food. "Hello Taylor, you look very pretty. Who is this?"

"This is my boyfriend Chad Danforth, Mrs. Montez." She put her hand on Chad's arm.

"It's very nice to meet you Mrs. Montez." Chad said smiling.

"Well everything is ready, how about we sit and eat?" She pulled out her chair. "Gabriella can you please bring the water?"

"Yes mom." Gabi said from the kitchen. She came in with a pitcher of water. I pulled her chair out for her and she sat down. "Thank you" She smiled.

I sat down next to her quietly. We started eating. Mrs. Montez was talking to Taylor. I was sitting quietly, eating. I was still nervous as hell. Gabi put her hand on my leg and I smiled at her. "So Troy, what do your parents do?" Mrs. Montez asked me.

"My mother Lucy is a receptionist for a clinic during the day and she works nights as a nurse. My dad is in between jobs right now." I said, looking at Gabi's mom then at Gabi.

"That's awful. Are they from around here?" She put her hand on her chin.

"Born and raised. They both went to East High. My mothers parents moved down to Florida when I was younger. All of my dad's family is here though." I took a sip of my water.

"I went to East High too! What are their names? I might remember them" She was suddenly so intrigued be me.

"Lucille Peterman and Jack Bolton." I said.

Her eyes went wide for a second then they went back to normal. She seemed to be forcing a smile. "I was friends with your mom before I moved down to LA. And Jack Bolton.. He was quite the basketball player."

I nodded. "Until they had me." It got awkward and quiet. We finished eating.

"Gabriella, get the dishes please." Mrs. Montez said before walking out.

Gabi looked at me after she left. "I'm so sorry."

"It's alright." I said, giving her a small smile. She kissed my cheek gently. "Let me help you." I gathered up dishes and walked them into the kitchen.

"Thank you Troy." We rinsed the dishes and put them in the dish washer. We went to the living room. Chad and Taylor were about to leave. I guessed I should go too.

"I think I'm going to go too Gabs." I gave her a long hug. "Call me tomorrow if you want to hang out or something."

"Hold on. Mom They're leaving!" She yelled. Mrs. Montez came down stairs.

"It was nice to see you Taylor. It was nice meeting you Chad, Troy." She smiled at us before walking back upstairs.

Gabi walked with me over to my truck. "I'm sorry again, she is from another planet, I swear."

I chuckled. "It's okay Gabs. Call me tomorrow." I opened the door and she put her hand on my arm. She put her hand on my cheek and kissed me gently. I smiled at her and kissed her soft lips again. "Goodnight Beautiful"

She smiled at me. "Goodnight Troy." I watched her walk back into the house before getting in my truck and driving home.

* * *

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	6. Admiration

**Troy's POV**

Spring Break was over quickly Gabs and I hung out everyday. We drove around town in my truck and went down to the lake. We just talked all day. I never could get tired of her voice. We have been back at school for a couple of days. I didn't have any classes with Gabi but we hung out at lunch and after school. We only had a little over a month until Graduation. I was excited.

I still hadn't asked Gabi out. I liked her a lot and I wanted to be with her but I don't know what was stopping me. I think I am going to ask her today. It was Friday and this weekend we were going camping by the lake. Gabi's mom thought she was going to be at Taylor's and vice versa. I went camping at the lake all the time so it didn't really bother my parents, nor Chad's.

I got home from school and packed some clothes and towels. I grabbed a tent and I put my things in the back of my truck. I put the big ice chest in the back. We were going to stop at the grocery store on the way there. I drove over to Chad's house.

I knocked at the door. Chad's mom opened it. "Troy Bolton, you know better than to knock on the door. Come in."

I gave her a hug. "Hey Lynn. How are you?"

She smiled at me. "I'm great, do you want anything to drink?"

"Sure." I smiled at her.

"Let me get you some lemonade." She walked into the kitchen.

Chad came downstairs. "Hey hoops. Got everything?"

"Yeah, I got everything. Do you have your tent?" I asked him.

"In the Garage. Come on." We walked to the garage and put his stuff in the back of my truck.

Lynn came out with two glasses of lemonade. "Here you go Troy." I took one and took a sip.

"Thanks Lynn, I love your lemonade." She smiled and handed the other glass to Chad. "Ready when you are bro."

"Yeah." We walked back into the garage and I finished my lemonade. We walked inside and put our glasses in the sink. "Bye mom We'll see you on Sunday."

"Here sweetie," She handed him some money. "Just in case. Here's some gas money Troy." She handed me some money and walked away before I protested.

I sighed. "Let's go then." We got into my truck and stopped at the gas station to fill up. Taylor and Gabi met us at the grocery store 10 minutes later. We got out of the truck and I walked over to Gabi. "Hey beautiful"

She smiled at me. "Hi handsome." She laced my fingers in between hers and we walked in. We bought a lot of food and drinks and we packed it all into the cooler. "I'm so excited. I've never been camping before."

"Get the hell out of here Gabs." Chad said looking at her in disbelief.

She shrugged. "What?" I chuckled and kissed the top of her head. We all got back into the car and drove down to the lake. I got out and started putting up the tent. "I'm going to sleep in your tent right?" Gabi asked me while she was holding a pole.

"You don't want to sleep with Taylor and Chad?" I joked, pushing the pole through the tent.

She laughed. "I'd rather sleep with you." I looked at her and she had a devilish grin on her face.

"Well then that's settled." I said turning my attention back to the tent. I soon got the tent up and put my things in there. Gabi put her things in there as well. I walked over to Chad and Taylor and helped them with their tent.

"Now what do we do?" Gabi asked from beside me.

"Whatever we want." I yawned and smiled at her. "I'm going to take a nap." I grabbed my pillow and blankets from the truck and set them up inside the tent. I laid down and closed my eyes. I heard the zipper from the tent open and close. I opened my eyes and Gabi set her pillow beside me and laid down with me.

"Mind if I join you?" She asked quietly. I shook my head and wrapped my arms around her. She rested her head against my chest. Gabi gave me a kiss to wake up. I opened my tired eyes and she was sitting beside me. She opened all the windows of the tent. It was hot in the tent. "Good morning sleepy."

I smiled and rubbed my face. "What time is it?"

"5 something." She ran her fingers through my hair. "You know you mumble in your sleep? It's so cute."

I laughed. "You were watching me?" She nodded. I pulled her down to me. I kissed her lips slowly. She rolled on top of me and kissed my lips firmly. I ran my tongue along her lip and she let me in, meeting my tongue with hers. I moved my hands down to her butt. Her hands found their way under my shirt, her fingers clawed down my abdomen. She was driving me crazy. I bit down on her bottom lip and tugged on it. She moaned quietly. I rolled on top of her and attached my lips to her neck.

"T-troy." She said quietly. Her eyes were shut tight. I pulled away from her neck and she looked at me.

I smiled at her. "Gabriella." I looked down at her partially swollen lips. "Please, be my girlfriend." I looked back at her eyes.

She smiled at me. "Okay, I'll be your girlfriend." She pulled me back down attacking my lips with kisses, not that I really mind. I chuckled and kissed her lips gently. I covered us with the blanket and she removed my shirt. I connected my lips against hers and she rubbed my chest slowly.

It started to get warm under the blanket. I rolled off her and took the blanket off of us. She turned over and she spooned against me. I kissed the back of her neck. "You are so beautiful baby" I mumbled against the back of her neck.

She giggled quietly and presses her butt against my groin. "want to go swimming?"

"Sure." I sat up and looked at the window. Tay and Chad were sitting on a log talking. I zipped up the window and dug around for my trunks. I pulled them out and changed quickly. I heard Gabi giggle. "Why are you laughing?"

"Your butt is so white." She said tying the strings of her bikini behind her neck. She giggled and walked over to me. "Help me"

"Only if I can take it off later." I partially joked. I tied the strings behind her neck.

"We'll see." She bent over and put on her bottoms. I pulled her against me again and kissed her lips firmly. I grabbed her butt then pulled away and walked out of the tent.

"Hey guys, want to go swimming?" I yelled and Gabi followed behind me.

"Maybe later." Taylor said.

"Alright." Gabi said, she pulled me over toward the water. We walked over to the dock and she lowered herself in the water. "Come on."

I followed her in and wrapped my arms around her. She wrapped her legs around me. "Do you like camping so far?"

She nodded. "It's quite an experience." She smiled and gave me a kiss. "You made it so much fun."

I smiled and kissed her lips down to her neck. "I'm glad." I rested my face in the crook of her neck. "I'm glad you agreed to be my girlfriend."

She rubbed the back of my head. "It took you long enough." I pulled away to look at her and she smirked at me. "Seriously. I would have been your girlfriend the second day that I met you. Remember we were down her and you took me on the boat. I love your boat." I chuckled. "I want a boat. Like a big motorized one. I want to learn how to wake board. Who was talking to me about that? I think it was Jason or Zeke or something."

"Probably Jason." I said. She let go of me and started swimming away from me. "Where are you going?"

She shrugged. "I don't know." I chuckled and swam back to the dock. I sat at the edge and put my feet in the water. Gabi squealed. "Oh my god. Something just touched my foot." She swam quickly over to me and climbed onto the dock. "I swear something just touched my foot."

I chuckled. "It was probably just a fish baby."

"Scared the shit out of me." She said laughing. "oh lord." She laid back. "What are we having for dinner?"

"Probably something simple like sandwiches." I laid on my stomach next to her. "You hungry?"

She nodded. "I haven't eating anything all day." I leaned over and blew raspberries on her stomach She squealed and laughed. "Troy, stop."

I chuckled and got up. "Come on. I'll make you a sandwich."

She got up after me and gave me a kiss. "You're the best."

"I know." I said winking at her. She reached back and grabbed my butt. "Gabs. What is up with you and my butt?"

She shrugged. "it's cute and white as snow." She started laughing.

"You just crack yourself up don't you?" I said laughing. I walked over to my Truck and she sat on the tailgate. I pulled the cooler over and took out some bread. "PB and J or Turkey?"

"PB and J" She said swinging her feet. I made a sandwich for each of us and grabbed us two waters. I put everything back in the cooler. "Thanks babe." She smiled as I handed her the sandwich. I sat next to her as we ate.

"No problem." I enjoyed the quiet as we ate out sandwiches. There were some noises coming from Taylor and Chad's tent. Gabi started giggling. I knew she heard it too. I looked over at her and she covered her mouth as she chewed. Once she swallowed she busted out laughing. I couldn't help but laugh myself. "Are you okay?"

She nodded. "The flashback to Chad's picture.." She started giggling again, falling on me. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry… I cant…" Her laugh went silent. It was just about the cutest thing. She caught her breath. "Oh my god. I have to pee." She got up and left her sandwich. She ran down towards the lake where there was an outhouse.

I shook my head. She was definitely something else. I finished my sandwich and opened a new garbage bag. I threw away my napkin and I took a drink of the water. Gabi came running back. "Did you make it?" I joked.

She giggled. "Yes. My stomach hurts from laughing." I grabbed my big bottle of Purell and squeezed some in her hands. "Thank you." She rubbed them together before finishing her sandwich.

"you are just a big ball of laughter today." I smiled at her. She nodded. "Let's go change into something warm, I'll start a fire."

"Alright, did we get marshmallows?" She slid off the truck bed.

"Yep and graham crackers and chocolate." I held her hand as we walked to the tent. I wiped my feet before I went in. "it gets cold fast up here." I walked over to my bag and took off my trunks and put boxers on. "I know you're looking at my white butt."

Gabi giggled. "Guilty." I put sweats on and a wildcat t-shirt on. I laid down on my blankets and closed my eyes. Gabi sat beside me. "Why so tired?" She rubbed my stomach.

"I couldn't sleep last night… Sometimes I get insomnia spells and I don't sleep for days." I looked over at her. "sometimes I just drive around but other times I just think."

"I get that sometimes. I like to write when I can't sleep, like letters and stuff." She said leaning her chin on my chest. "Now I'll call you when I can't sleep and keep you up with me."

I chuckled. "That's fine with me." I puckered my lips and she bent down and gave me a kiss. "I'm glad you came camping with us."

She nodded. "Me too. I want a S'more." She leaned down and gave me another kiss. She bit down on my bottom lip. She let it go and got up. "Let's make a fire." She tried to pull me up but fell onto the side of the tent. She started giggling.

I laughed. "You okay baby?" She nodded and giggled. I got up and pulled her up. We walked out of the tent and over to the pit. I set up some logs and made the fire. Gabi found some chips and were eating them as she watched me.

"Want some?" Gabs held out the bag of chips as I sat down next to her. I grabbed a couple and popped them into my mouth.

"I'm hungry." Chad said coming out of the tent. Gabi and I watched him stretch and Taylor came out after him. They walked over to the truck and made themselves food and they sat down by us.

"what?" They asked at the same time.

Gabi and I looked away and she started giggling. "Shh." she buried her face into my chest.

"What's so funny?" Chad asked. They eyed us suspiciously.

"My girlfriend is just very giggly today." I said as she pulled away from my chest.

"Girlfriend?" Taylor squealed. Gabi went over to her and they started talking. Chad and I rolled our eyes at the same time.

Chad came over at sat next to me. "So you finally did it huh?"

I nodded. "I did and she said yes."

"I told you she would man." He said smiling. He grabbed the bag of chips out of my hand and started eating some.

"Sounded like you and Taylor were having fun." I said quietly, elbowing him.

"I plead the fifth." He said.

I just looked at him. "Good boy." Taylor said. Gabi giggled from next to her.

"I want S'mores." Gabi said getting up. She grabbed the marshmallows, chocolate and crackers and brought them over. She went back to the truck and picked up a couple sticks. She put two marshmallows on the stick and held them into the fire.

I walked over to her and prepared the chocolate and the crackers. When she was ready she put the marshmallows on the chocolate and graham cracker. I handed it to her and put two marshmallows on the stick she used. I put it on the fire. I held the stick between my legs. I prepared the crackers. I placed the marshmallows on the chocolate. "Perfect." I put it in my mouth.

"How do you not burn them?" Taylor said. She looked at me, astonished.

"It's a Bolton family secret." I said "Not even Chad knows."

"That's why I make him make mine." Chad said laughing.

"You should make me one." Gabi said smirking at me. "I'll be the judge of it."

I finished my s'more and held out the stick. "Marshmallow me." She giggled and placed two on the stick. I placed the stick between my legs and prepared the crackers. I put the marshmallows on the chocolate and covered it with the other cracker. I handed it to Gabi. "Here you go my lady."

"Thank you." She took a bite and looked at me. "God damn you Troy." I chuckled. "These are perfect." She ate it. We passed the s'more stuff on to Chad and Tay. I looked up at the dark sky. "I didn't even notice it got dark that quick." Gabi said from beside me. "I love looking up and being able to see stars." She wrapped her hand around my arm.

"That's what I love about the dessert. You can always see stars." I looked up at the sky. I yawned.

"Let's go lay down." Gabi said quietly from next to me. I nodded. "We're going to go lay down."

"Alright. I'll take care of the fire." Chad said waving to us.

We walked back to the tent and climbed in. I zipped up the windows and doors. Gabi put her hair up in a bun and laid down. I laid down next to her and gave her a kiss. "I'm tired." I mumbled.

She smiled. "I know." She rubbed my scalp slowly. "Go to sleep." She cuddled up against me and closed her eyes. I kissed her forehead before closing my eyes myself. "Goodnight handsome."

"Goodnight beautiful" I said quietly letting sleep take over me.

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	7. Deflection

**Gabriella's POV**

I woke up wrapped in the arms of my new boyfriend. I felt like I was some kind of high whenever I was with him. It was unexplainable. I turned over and watched his chest rise and fall. I couldn't believe a guy like him could want to be with a girl like me. I leaned over and gave him a gentle kiss.

He stirred and kept his eyes shut. "mmmmm." he groaned. He turned to face me, pulling me against him. I giggled quietly and kissed his neck firmly. I rolled on top of him and sucked on his neck. I grabbed a hold of his hair. "G-gabi." He said breathlessly. I kissed the small mark I left on his neck and rolled off him.

"Nice to see your awake." I giggled, laying next to him. He opened his eyes to glare at me and started tickling my sides. I tried to grab his hands but I was laughing too hard. "Troyyy" I whined. I kissed his lips, distracting him from tickling me. He kissed me back gently.

"You are lucky I'm tired." He said pulling away with a sleepy smile on his face. He finally sat up. "Good morning baby."

"Good morning. I see you are not a morning person." I laid my head in his lap. "I love mornings. Sometimes I go for a run. It helps with the ADHD. I haven't ran yet here. It's always too hot or I stayed up late."

He laid back down against his pillow. "Gabi, you know I love to hear you talk, but I'm tired."

I giggled and cuddled against him. "Sorry babe. Go back to sleep."

"Only if you give me a kiss." He said in his very sexy sleepy voice. I couldn't resist. I pressed my body against his and kissed his lips. I wrapped a leg around him and he draped his fingers against my waist. I kissed down his chin to his throat. He let out a quiet groan and pulled away from me. "Sorry" He mumbled. He turned to lay on his stomach.

"You alright?" I asked, smirking at him.

"Fine." His voice crackled a bit. I giggled and turned to face away from him. I felt his eyes on me as I took off my shirt. "Gabi, you're killing me."

I covered up my chest and turned to face him "You've already seen me naked before."

"I-I know." He finally turned his head away from me. I giggled and turned around and put my bathing suit top on.

"You don't have to hide your boner. I already felt it on my leg this morning. Twice." I smiled back at him, his cheeks were bright red. He was quiet, I crawled over to him and kissed his cheek gently. "You're so cute when your embarrassed."

Troy gave me a small smile before turning his head away from me. He groaned. "What do you do to me?"

I giggled. "I give you boners." I couldn't help myself. He set himself up for that one. "And I give you hickeys."

He sat up and put his hand to his neck. I poked it and he winced. "Shit Gab." I winked at him.

I stood up and grabbed the bottoms of my bathing suit. I took off my shorts and my underwear. While I was bending over Troy slapped my ass cheek hard. It stung. "Troy!" I screamed and pulled my bottoms on.

I turned to face him and he just smirked at me. "You gave me a hickey and I left a hand print on your ass."

I sighed. "Truce?" I held out my hand.

He shook it. "Truce." He pulled me against him. "I'm sorry for smacking your cute butt." I giggled and kissed his lips.

"I'm sorry for giving you a hickey and a boner." He rolled his eyes at me and gave me another kiss. I got up and unzipped the tent.

I walked out of the tent and rubbed my butt. It still stung a little bit. I turned around and looked at the outline of the hand on my butt. I cursed under my breath and walked down to the outhouse by the lake. I held my breath as I did my business. I walked back up to Troy's Truck and rubbed my hands with purell. I put some peanut better on a piece of bread and walked out to the dock.

I was going to miss Albuquerque when I had to go back to LA. I missed my dad though and my friends. Mom and I were always fighting about something now-a-days. Papa Rocks wasn't getting any better. I finished my bread and pulled my knees up to my chest. I had changed when I moved out here. I am more bold and I wasn't afraid to be myself. Out in LA I felt like I was being judged for everything I did.

"You alright babe?" I heard Troy say. I turned around and he sat down next to me.

"Yeah, just lost in thought." He kissed the side of my head.

"What are you thinking about?" He wrapped an arm around me.

I leaned my head on his shoulder. "Just about LA and my friends. Just stuff. No big deal." He smiled at me and placed his lips on my forehead. "and my sweet boyfriend." I kissed his chin. "What are we going to do today? We should go on the boat or go fishing. Or we could I don't know. Something fun you know."

He placed his lips on mine to shut me up. He held the back of my neck and parted his lips. I met my tongue with his, climbing on his lap. He wrapped an arm around my waist. I pressed my chest against his. His hands traveled around my body slowly.

"Get a room." I looked up and saw Chad smirking. I rolled my eyes and attached my lips back to Troy's.

Troy pulled away from me slowly. "Let's go get the boat."

I jumped up. "alright." I ran over to the Truck and jumped into the back.

"You have way too much energy girl." Taylor said walking over to me.

"I know…" I said grinning.

Troy got into the truck and I crawled half way in the window and turned the radio up. Troy watched me with an amused look on his face. I crawled back out and started dancing to the song on the radio. Troy started backing the boat into the lake. I held onto the truck as Troy got out and tied the boat to the dock. He got back in and parked it in its original spot.

I hopped back out and jumped on Troy's back. "Whoa." He caught me and walked me to the dock. "Wanna fish?"

"Sure" I hopped down and got in the boat. Troy walked away and got his fishing pole and a small radio. He got back in and I found some sunscreen. I put some on my legs and my face. I rubbed some on my stomach and then my arms and neck. I handed the bottle to Troy and stood in front of him. "Can you get my back?"

"Anything to put my hands on your body" He said quietly. I felt a shiver run down my spine. I felt his hands rub the cool cream around my back. He moved his hands to my lower back and kissed the back of my neck gently.

"What happened to shy boner boy this morning?" I giggled as he put his hands on my ass.

He laughed. "You've unleashed another side of me." He moved his lips along the back of my neck to just behind my ear.

I sighed and smiled. "You're getting all horny on m-me" I stammered on the last part of my sentence as he started sucking on my neck. I pulled away from him and pushed him back gently. "Your turn."

"You already gave me a hickey." He protested. I took the bottle from him and squeezed some into my hands. I rubbed sunscreen along his muscular back. I rubbed his shoulders, massaging them firmly. He let out a breath. "Feels good."

I giggled. "I'm glad. Now turn around." He turned to face me. I put some more sunscreen in my hands and rubbed along his chest. My hands traveled down along his abs. I accented each one, tracing my fingers along them. I put some more in my hands and put some on his arms and rubbed most of it in. I moved back to his arms. My hands traveled along his body down past his belly button. He groaned happily.

I wrapped my arms around him and leaned up to kiss him. He kissed me back and smiled. "You are a horrible person."

I laughed. "I know, let's go catch some fish." I sat down and he sat in front of me. I grabbed the little radio and turned it on.

_"So innocent, pure and sweet_  
_American Honey._  
_There's a wild, wild whisper blowing in the wind._  
_Callin' out my name like a long lost friend._  
_Oh, I miss those days as the years go by._  
_Oh, nothing sweeter than summertime._  
_And American Honey."_

"who's this?" I asked as the song continued.

He moved his arms swiftly, moving the ores. "Lady Antebellum." He replied and I sat back listening to the song. I liked it. Country music was definitely growing on me, especially since I spent a lot of time around Troy. We stopped and Troy took out his fishing pole. I watched him bait the hook thing and throw it out into the water.

I watched him as he set the pole down carefully and I sat at the bottom of the boat, putting my feet up on the opposite side. "Your country music is growing on me." I admitted to him.

He chuckled "I'm glad it's not annoying you." He sat next to me and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. "You know if I make you uncomfortable just hit me or something."

I giggled. "I'll let you know. We'll probably end up humping like rabbits." I moved my foot back and forth. I could never sit still, when I had to I'd literally go crazy.

He chuckled and shook his head. "Let's continue our game." He suggested. "What are you most attracted to on me?"

I giggled. "First, your eyes. They are blue and beautiful." He smiled at me. "Then I saw you with your shirt off then I almost threw my panties across the room."

He burst out laughing. "Gabi!"

I giggled and shrugged. "What?" I smiled innocently, rubbing his thigh.

"I never pined you for the sex bunny type." He said, leaning back.

I raised my eyebrows. "What exactly is a sex bunny?"

He chuckled. "I don't even know to be honest."

I smiled and shook my head at him. "Today's a nice day. Not too hot."

"Not yet, you mean." He reminded me.

"It least it's not covered in a thick layer of smog." I smirked at him. He shrugged. "Now its your turn to answer your question Mister Bolton."

He thought about it for a second. "Well you ran into me then started talking and haven't shut up." I hit his chest. "But I like it though. I like listening to you talk. You didn't care what anybody thought of you. You have an magnetic personality."

I smiled at him. "I thought you were going to say boobs."

He chuckled. "I'm both." I looked at him confused. "You know how most guys are either a boob guy or an ass guy. I'm both." He said, glancing down at my chest, winking at me.

I rolled my eyes. "You're lucky I like you."

He placed a sloppy kiss on my cheek. "The luckiest guy in the world." I wiped my cheek and he scoffed. "I'm offended."

"Why?" I asked laughed.

"You wiped my kiss off!" He pouted.

I rolled my eyes and smiled. "Fine. Give me another one."

"No." He said looking in the other direction.

I rubbed his thigh slowly. "Please baby." I whispered against his ear.

A small smile appeared on his face. "Fine." He gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.

I kissed him lips. "Thank you and I'm sorry."

He smiled at me. "It's fine. I forgive you." He pressed his lips against mine again. "You are beautiful"

"You are beautiful too Troy." I ran my finger tips along his cheek slowly. He rolled his eyes and sat up. He took the poll and reeled it in. He looked at the bare hook and sighed. "Let the master try." I put some bait on the hook and took the pole from him. I held the line and flicked the line out. I watched it sink and put it down.

"You are a quick learner." He noted as he sat down next to me.

"I'm a nerd. Straight A student. Taking mostly AP's. Even though I lack focus most of the time. It helps my brain retain knowledge." He raised his eyebrows at me. "I'm cursed with brains and diarrhea of the mouth."

He laughed. "You are definitely like nobody that I've ever met before."

"I'm taking that as a compliment." I said, leaning against him. "When I first met you it looked like you were scared of me. Like Shitless scared. This girl runs into you and doesn't shut up. I guess that would scare me too."

"I was. I even told you that." He said. "I like you. I haven't liked someone the way that I like you in a long time."

"What was your last girlfriend like?" I blurted out before I had a chance to process it.

He sighed. "She was nice at first. Then when I met her parents she started acting all weird. We were freshman in high school. It's not like we were getting married. They didn't think I was good enough for their little fucking princess." He let out a breath of air to calm down. "And she broke up with me. That was the end of that."

"Right Michaela.. The stupid bitch." I said, rubbing his arm. "How can somebody turn away a guy like you?"

"It's easy. I have no money. I have a shitty car. My parents were teen parents. I've never been anywhere except New Mexico and Florida. I'm going to live in the same house for the rest of my life because I don't have the money for college. My best friends are leaving in August and I'm going to be the town joke. Everybody will see me and say 'there's that Bolton kid. So much potential wasted.'" He said, rambling on. "You are going back to California. Marry some movie star, or something. Have 3 perfect kids and live in a house next to the Hollywood sign."

I laughed. "You have a very misjudged perception of me and California babe." He sighed from beside me. "I could care less if you have money. I love your truck. Everybody makes mistakes. You have your whole life ahead of you to travel. You can go to college, you just have to want it. Your best friends are eventually going to come back. Their whole life is here Troy. You are that Bolton kid with all the potential in the world. You just need to believe in yourself." He looked away from me, out on the lake. "I am going to California. I don't know if we will be together or not. It's a couple months away. Hey. You might be like I'm tired of hearing this bitch talking and be done with me. I don't know." He was quiet. "That is half of the fun of being young. Not knowing what the future holds."

The line started tugging out. He grabbed the fishing pole and reeled it in. There was a small fish at the end of the line. I grabbed the line and took the fish off and put it back into the water. Pablo. I took the pole from him and set it in the boat. I sat on the bench and started rowing back to the dock.

"Let me." He said quietly. I nodded and handed over the ores. He rowed back and tied up the boat. I got up and stretched out my back. It was getting warm so I put my hair up in a messy bun and eased myself into the water. I rubbed the water over my arms.

I walked back to the tent and slipped on some shorts and a sports bra. I put some socks and shoes on. I needed to clear my head. Troy needed his space and that was fine with me. I got out of the tent and started running. I took off toward the road leading to the highway.

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**Hey Guys! Happy Fourth of July! Hope ya'll are having a wonderful holiday. Be safe! Thank you guys so much for all the positive reviews. It makes me really happy that ya'll like my stories. I can't even say that enough. Grandparents are here for the week so hopefully i'll get to update later. If not, have a great rest of the week!**

**Don't forget to review!**


	8. Fascination

**Gabriella's POV**

I knew it was a mile until I hit the road. I ran pretty quick miles, one athletic thing I was good at was running. I finally hit the concrete of the highway about 6 minutes later. I caught my breath. The heat was killer. I stretched out my legs and took off back towards the campsite. It took me longer to get back because I was tired. I stopped about half way and walked the rest of the way.

"What do you mean you don't know where she is Troy?" I heard Taylor shriek. "God what did you do to her?"

"I didn't do anything to her Taylor." He said loudly. "She went into the tent and then she was gone!"

"Her mom is going to kill me!" Taylor said, I finally saw them. Taylor was pacing.

"I'm right here." I said, walking up.

They looked at me. "Where the hell were you Gabi? You scared the shit out of us!" Taylor said, walking over to me. She wrapped her arms around me then quickly pulled away. "You're sweaty."

"I took a run to the highway and back." I shrugged. I walked over to the tent and took my shoes and socks off. I took off my shorts and threw them in the tent. "I was giving Troy some space to think about what I told him."

"I'm not even going to ask. I'm glad you are safe. Next time tell me huh?" She said, in her natural motherly voice. "God, it's fucking hot" She fanned herself and walked away.

Troy looked at me and I looked back at him. "I'm sorry for running off." I said quietly.

"It's okay. You just scared me." He came over to me and wrapped his arms around me tightly. "Ew you are sweaty."

I smiled up at him. "I need to go cool off. Your abs are making me hot." I winked at him.

He chucked. He pulled me towards the lake, walking backwards. We walked into the water and I dived in. I swam away from him and dunked my head underwater before swimming to the dock. I sat down and put my feet in the water. "Feel better?" He asked me as he swam over to me. He leaned his head on my knee.

"You're so cute" I ran a hand through his hair. I pushed his hair back and smiled. "Your hair looks so sexy pushed back." I said in my best Regina George voice.

He laughed. "Okay mean girls."

I giggled and jumped down. I wrapped my arms around him. I leaned down and kissed his lips gently. "You know you got me out of my clothes on the first day we met." I mumbled against his lips.

He smiled. "You're the one that wanted to go skinny dipping."

I smirked. "I know. But you liked it. My naked body pressed against yours. Just like this." I leaned in slowly again and kissed his lips gently. He kissed me firmly and held his arms around me tightly.

He pulled away from me slowly. "You were right you know." He said quietly.

I leaned my head against his shoulder. "About what?" I asked, placing a gentle kiss on his.

"About me." He breathed out. "I just let it get to me. I know it shouldn't have."

I just shrugged. "We're all human Troy. It's alright."

Troy looked at me like he was about to say something. He bit his lip instead. I released my arms from him and swam over to the dock and got out. I laid out on the dock. He followed me and laid down next to me. I let out a breath. "What was your last boyfriend like?"

I sighed, "He was a douche. I don't think he even liked me. He thought I was annoying and I talked to much. He hated that I couldn't sit still. He just didn't understand." I said shrugging.

"Well he is a douche then." I giggled quietly. "I'm not a douche. I really like you. You will never be annoying to me. I love that you talk too much. I love how you're never still. I may not understand now, but I will try."

I smiled at him and gave him a gentle kiss. "And that is more than enough for me."

He poked at my bun. "I love being out here. You never know exactly what time it is."

"It is nice. I like how we don't have to use computers or phones. We can just be alone." I rolled over to face him. "I like being alone with you."

He smiled at me. "I'm hungry."

"What do you want to eat baby?" I sat up and moved closer to him.

"A sandwich." He chuckled. "That's all we have."

"What kind?" I got up and I helped him up.

He held my hand as we walked towards the truck. "PB and J probably. I could eat those forever." I giggled. "I got Dr. Pepper for you. I think it's at the bottom of the cooler."

"Great, you'll have to get me one." I smirked. He just smiled at me and kissed my cheek. I let out a breath and leaned against him. He is the closest thing to perfection I've ever met.

We walked over to the cooler and he dipped his hand down and pulled out a for me. I kissed him to thank him. I watched him make us sandwiches and put the things back in the cooler. "A sandwich for my lady."

"Thank you sweet cheeks." I took the sandwich he was handing me and took a bite. "Perfect." I winked at him and he jumped up and sat next to me. "it's a beautiful day." I muttered taking another bite.

"It's almost as beautiful as you are." He replied. I smiled at him. He made my stomach go crazy when he said corny things like that. We ate quietly and looked over to see Chad and Taylor laughing on the boat. I smiled. They were so cute together. They were opposites, I think that's what makes them strong.

Troy wrapped an arm around me, I leaned against him. "They look so in love." I commented quietly.

"Have you ever been in love?" He asked me. I shook my head. "Me either. I thought I was. I was delusional." He chuckled and I laughed. I finished our food. I took a sip of my drink and I offered it to Troy. He took a drink then handed it back to me. We looked over at Taylor and Chad again. Troy looked at me. "I think I am starting to fall in love with you." He said quietly.

I felt the blood rush to my face. I put my hands on his and kissed his lips gently. "The feeling is mutual." I pulled away from him and finished the rest of my drink. I hopped off the truck and I started walking toward the tent. I looked back at Troy and smirked. He raised his eyebrows and got up and walked over toward me. I got in the tent and opened up all the windows halfway. It was hot in here. I laid down in the tent and I saw Troy walk by and the tent unzip. Troy zipped up the tent and laid down next to me.

"It's hot in here." He said looking at me.

I bit my lip. "I know. But it's more comfortable to make out here than on your truck." He raised his eyebrows. I climbed on top of him and ran my hands across his chest. I leaned down and kissed his lips slowly. I felt the butterflies fly around my stomach. He put his hands on my waist.

I parted my lips and he slipped him tongue into my mouth. He moved his hands up my body and grabbed my boobs gently. I moaned quietly in his mouth. He moves his hands back to my butt. I moved my hands down his body slowly. I brushed my fingertips along his abs down past his belly button. His breath hitched and he pulled away from my lips. He attached his lips to my neck. He rolled me over and laid partially on me.

Troy's lips traveled down to my chest. I lifted my sports bra over my head and he put his hand on my bare chest. His tongue brushed against my nipple. I bit my lip to stifle a moan. I ran my fingers through his hair, grabbing a hold of it once his lips surrounded my nipple. I moaned quietly and held onto his hair. He kissed down my boob and started sucking on it firmly. I moved my hands down into his swim trucks. "God" He breathed out.

I smiled at him as he finally pulled away from my chest. I smirked at him and brushed my fingers along his penis. He started tensing up, I felt him harden against my fingers. He fell on his back and I placed my lips on his. I pulled away and smiled at him. "I think that's enough for right now. It's like 100 degrees in here."

He just looked at me and breathed unevenly. He looked down at my chest. "if it was up to me you could walk around naked forever." He chuckled.

"I could say the same for you." I smirked nodding towards his boner. I kissed his abs. "You are very sexy." I traced his abs slowly.

"You are very beautiful." He kissed my lips. "I. Could. Just. Kiss. You. All. Day." He said in between kisses.

I giggled and pulled him over to me. "Good thing you can." I laid back and he put his face in my boobs. He bit the side of my boob. "Ow." I said pulling on his hair. "You already left one noticeable hickey. I don't need a matching one."

He pouted. "Come on."

I sighed. "fine." He attached his lips to my boob and sucked firmly. I bit my lip and closed my eyes. He pulled away and moved his tongue around my nipple again, he bit on it gently then pulled away. He put his hands on my boobs and played with them. "You having fun?"

He nodded and crashed them together making noises. "Pew pew... pew pew pew" I looked down at him, He looked up at me and smiled."Yeah, I am."

I laughed at him. He was very amusing to watch. "I thought I was the weird one." I muttered and his head shot back up.

"You still are baby." He licked my bottom lip and laid next to me, draping his arm around my waist.

I pouted and pointed to my lips. He leaned in and barely touched my lips against his then he pulled away. "Tease." I muttered and found my sports bra and pulled it back on.

He laughed. "Come on Gabi." He leaned over and kissed down my spine slowly. "You're the one that left me with a boner here."

I looked back at him and smirked. "What do you want me to do about that?" Before he had a chance to reply I pushed him down and straddled his lap. He gulped and I moved my hands down his chest slowly. I leaned down and kissed his lips firmly.

"Hey Guys! I caught a fish!" Chad yelled banging on the side of the tent.

I pulled away from Troy and giggled. "I want to see it Chad." I moved my hand over Troy's crotch, rubbing slowly as I got up. He groaned when I moved awaya from him. I unzipped the tent and poked my head out. Chad came over and showed the small fish to me. "It's so cute! What's its name?"

"Flounder!" He said. Chad made his way back over to Taylor who just rolled her eyes at me. I giggled and felt two hands wrap around my waist pulling me back in. I zipped back up the tent and landed on top of Troy.

"Somebody is aggressive." I smirked at him and leaned down to kiss him. He kissed me back slowly and grabbed my bottom lip in between his teeth. His hands were all over my ass. I grabbed his wrist and held them over his head. "Keep them there." I whispered. I kissed down his throat and onto his chest. I left a trail of kisses along his abdomen and barely past his belly button. I put my pointer fingers under the band of his swim trunks and started to pull them down slowly. I felt his hands in my hair and I pulled away from him.

He looked at me breathlessly. "What?"

I smiled sweetly. "You didn't keep your hands up. I told you to keep them there." I brushed my fingers down his chest then pulled away from him. "I'm going to go swimming."

"Skinny dipping?" He asked me with a smirk.

I shook my head. "Clothed." I smiled at him. "It's way too hot in here."

"Sorry, I have that effect on people." He said with another smirk.

I rolled my eyes at him and walked out of the tent. "Don't cum on my pillow." I yelled back at him.

"No promises." He yelled back at me. I giggled and walked out to the water. I put my feet in the water and leaned back on my elbows.

"Hey girl" Taylor came over in her bathing suit and sat next to me.

"Hey Tay." I smiled at her and she looked at me. "Do you think I'm a slut?"

She looked taken back by my sudden question. "What? Why would I think you were a slut?"

"I don't know. Troy and I just got together and I have this." I pointed to the hickey on my neck. "And these." I lifted my sports bra, covering my nipples showing her the love marks he left me. I pulled it back down and sighed. "I just can't stay away from him. Not that I want to. I just I don't know." I kind of laughed. "Sexually frustrated plus I think I'm falling in love with him and I have known him for a month and I'm leaving in August." I kept rambling on.

Taylor's eyebrows were elevated since I partially flashed her. She started laughing. "You are not a slut. If he was some random guy that you were never going to speak to again You'd be a slut." I raised my eyebrows. "But, I woud still love you Gabs. You are in a relationship, even if it is new. Trust me. I feel the same way about Chad. I just.. never mind. Don't feel like a slut because you aren't one."

I breathed out. "Alright, good. I feel better now." I reached over and put some water on my legs. "We didn't have sex yet though. I'm not sure about that. He can touch my boobs and my butt all he wants but no sexy time for him… At least not yet." I looked over at Taylor who smirked at me. I returned the smirk. "I heard you and Chad having sexy time yesterday." I wiggled my eyebrows up and down.

She smiled and turned away blushing. "I'll tell you about that later." She crossed her legs. "I know I'm more of a city girl but there is something about this lake."

"It's special." I added. "Peaceful, serene, beautiful." She nodded in agreement. "Where is Chad?"

She nodded towards the truck. "Eating." I turned back and saw him headfirst in the cooler. I giggled. "Where's Troy?"

"I left him with blue balls so god only knows." I said. We started laughing. "Men…"

"Food and Sex." Taylor said laughing. "The only things on their mind."

"Right?" I said breathlessly. "Troy was all shy a couple weeks ago but now he is all over me. Don't get me wrong I love the attention but damn." Taylor just laughed.

She nodded. "The quiet ones are always the freaks."

I laughed. "That is for sure."

"What are you guys talking about?" Chad sat down next to us with a four layer sandwich. It looked like it had turkey and PB and J in it. Just looking at it made me want to gag.

"What the hell are you eating?" I said. I crinkled my nose is disgust.

"The Quad" Taylor said shuddering. "Bread PB and J bread cheese bread turkey bread."

I made a gagging sound. "How can you eat that?" I tried not to look at it.

"I lived off of these since I was 14." Chad said defensively.

"Well, Taylor I'm going to leave the three of you alone and find my boyfriend." I got up and walked back to the tent. "Need help?" I said with a smirk. I didn't get a response though, it was quiet. "Troy?" I asked.

I unzipped and saw him asleep against my pillow. I smiled. I opened up all the windows and laid against him. He wrapped his arms around me tightly, grumbling in his sleep. I turned over and got tangled among him. I closed my eyes and let out a breath. I eventually fell asleep against him.

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**Sorry for the wait! I've been busy busy busy! I'm finished with school for the next two and a half weeks! yay! Grandparents are still here though so, i'll update when i can.**

**Thank you for reading and don't forget to review :)**


	9. Motivation

**Troy's POV**

I woke up and looked around and didn't realize where I was. I looked down and saw Gabi sleeping next to me. Our legs were tangled together. I leaned down and kissed her forehead. We were sweaty and stuck to each other. I was still groggy and didn't feel like moving so I laid my head back down and ran my fingers along her bare stomach.

"Mmm." She moaned quietly in her sleep. She rested her head back against my chest.

I heard my phone buzzing. I reached over to where I dropped it yesterday and haven't touched it since. I picked it up and looked at it. Three missed calls. I presumed they were from my mom. I listened to the first voice mail.

_"Hey Troy, I'm just checking in on you. Text me or call me. Let me know if you're alright. Love you Bye."_

I deleted my moms voice mail and listened to the next one.

_"Hello, um, Troy this is Gabi's mom I would like for you to tell her to call me. She isn't picking up her phone. Thank you."_

Uh-oh. I thought, I looked down at Gabi and sighed. I shook Gabi awake. "Baby. Wake up." I kissed her lips slowly.

She whined and looked up at me. "What Troy?"

"Your mom called me and left me a voice mail. She wants you to call her." I said quietly, rubbing her back slowly.

She groaned. "I do not want to talk to my bitchy mother." She sat up, pulling herself away from me. "But I'll call her to get her off my back." She rolled her eyes and found her phone. "10 missed calls. Fucking ridiculous." She looked at her. "Mom, Mom, Mom, Mom, Dad, Taylor's Mom, Mom, Dad, Taylor's Mom, Mom." She moved her fingers across her iphone screen and put it up to her ear. She smirked and put the voice mail on speaker phone.

_" -a Montez, You better answer your phone. This is the fourth time I've called you. I'm calling your father."_

"Delete" She mumbled. The phone beeped then it started up again.

_"Hey baby girl, Your mom is being crazy and frantically calling me because you wont answer your phone. Just call her back please. I love you, bye."_

She pressed another button and the phone beeped.

_"I called Taylor's Mom to find out you are not over there! Gabriella! You are going to be grounded when you get home. I mean it. You better answer my calls."_ Beep.

_"Taylor's Mom called your friend Chad's mom to tell me that you went camping with two boys! Gabriella Montez, you better call me back ASAP. I'm telling your father about this and he is not going to be happy. He's going to-"_ She pressed the end button and rolled her eyes.

"I told you she was fucking crazy." Gabi said, looking at me. "Well Here goes nothing." She pressed a button and put her phone against her ear. "Hi Mom… Mom… Stop Yelling… I'm fine… Mom-… Mom-…" She sighed loudly as she kept getting interrupted. "We were out on the lake all day… I lied because I know you wouldn't let me go. You've been a crazy bitch since you and dad got divorced… It's the truth and you know it… I came for Papa Rocks. Not you… I would go back to LA in a heart beat if I hadn't made friends here…. What the fuck ever mom." She hung up the phone and threw it at her bag. "She is the biggest C word I've ever met."

"C word?" I asked confused.

She half smiled. "It starts with a C and ends with an UNT." I looked at her even more confused. "Maybe it's a California term, like Hella."

I smiled at her. "Whatever you say baby." I leaned over and kissed her lips. "I have to call my mom too."

"At least your mom is sane." She mumbled. I picked up my phone and put it to my ear after dialing her number.

_"Hey honey, how's the lake?"_ My mom greeted me.

I laid down. "Good, it feels good against the heat, like always. How's dad?"

_"Looking for another job. He had an interview at that rock company on the other side of town. He said it went well. We're praying for good news."_ She sighed. _"Well I have to get back to work. I love you Troy, be safe."_

"I love you too mom. I will. Bye." I said looking at Gabi. She was looking at her phone with a blank face. I put my phone where it was and brushed my fingers over her knee cap.

She looked up at me. "Hi handsome." She leaned down and kissed me.

"Hi beautiful." I held my arms out. She put her phone down and cuddled against me. She laid her head on my chest.

"I think I'm going to be calling you for my insomniac spells. We can go for a drive or something." She kissed my chest. "I do not want to be around my mother, she's already trying to send me back to LA."

I looked at her confused. "Why?"

She rolled her eyes. "She said I'm getting into too much trouble here. When I was in LA all I did was sit on my ass at home. Maybe go for the occasional run. I was under her thumb and now I'm not and she hates it." She let a breath out. "God. I'm almost 18 years old for crying out loud. I can do whatever the hell I want."

I kissed her forehead. "Relax, sweetheart." I kissed her ear gently. "It will be okay. I'll be there for you when you can't sleep at 2 in the morning or anytime. Call me and I'll be there."

She smiled at me. "You are the best boyfriend ever."

I winked at my beautiful girlfriend. "I know."

We eventually got out of the tent and hung out with Taylor and Chad for the rest of the night. We went to bed around 11; I checked my phone before we actually fell asleep. We were exhausted after the long day but we didn't want to go back home. We got up and ate and took a swim before we loaded up the boat. We packed all our stuff and took down the tents. We left around 2 and I got to take Gabi home.

We sat in front of her house for a minute. She smiled at me. "I feel all dirty and gross." She giggled. "I definitely need a shower."

"We both do, but you still look beautiful as always, You don't even need make up. You are naturally beautiful." I placed a kiss on her lips. She smiled at me and pulled away.

"Gabriella. Inside. Now." We looked over and saw Gabi's Mom standing at the door.

She sighed and looked at me. "I'll call you before I got to bed and I'll see you tomorrow."

"Alright" I kissed her hands gently. "I'll see you soon."

"Bye baby." She jumped out of the truck and grabbed her bag. She blew me a kiss and waved. She walked past her mom and went inside. I drove back to my house and parked the boat in the driveway.

I walked into my house and went straight into my room. I fell asleep for a couple of hours. "Troy, wake up." My mom said, shaking me. "Dinner is ready."

"Okay." I looked at her and got up. I looked at my phone.

_"She is driving me insane! I miss you. That is all."_

I smiled at Gabi's text. I replied. _"I'm sorry sweetheart. I miss you too."_

I walked out of my room and into the dining room. I sat down at the table and served myself. "Hey pops."

"Hey Troy. How was the lake?" He asked looking at me.

"Fun, I caught a couple fish." I lied. He smiled at me. We ate and talked about my dads job search. He was working hard on finding a new job. I commend him. If only he could get one. "I want to go to college." I said finally.

"Troy.." My mom started.

"I know we can't really afford it but I was thinking that I have a couple of phone numbers from those colleges that said they wanted me. I could give them a call and ask them for another chance." I said, picking at my food. "What do you think?"

My father sighed. "It's at least worth a try. Right Luce?"

She nodded in agreement. "I think you should do it Troy."

I smiled up at them "I will." We finished eating and I went back in my room. I found the letters from the colleges that wanted me. Arizona State, Louisiana State, University of Florida, U of A. Arizona was the closest to California but none exactly there. I put the on my nightstand and jumped in the shower. I felt refreshed and clean. I got changed into some shorts and got into bed. Gabi was the only reason I wanted to go back to school. I had to check my grades, raise them if possible. I needed to go to college if I wanted to get out of here.

My phone started vibrating and I picked It up. _"Hey babe."_ I heard Gabi whisper. _"What are you doing?"_

"Laying down, What's up?" I asked. "Why are you whispering?"

_"I don't know."_ She started giggling. _"I miss you already. I can't sleep."_

"What did your mom say when you got home?" I leaned against my pillow, rubbing my chest.

She sighed, _"She scolded me. I'm putting air quotes around scolded. Those were her words. She said my dad is coming down for a week to study me. They think my odd behavior is fixable. Again, air quotes. I told her you were my boyfriend and she freaked out."_ She yawned. _"I'll save you the details."_

"I'm sorry baby. I'm sure it will get better. I can't wait to see you tomorrow." I scratched the back of my neck. "Gabi withdrawals are killer."

She giggled. _"so are Troy withdrawals."_ She yawned again.

"Go to sleep baby." I closed my eyes and leaned against the pillow. "I'll see you tomorrow."

_"No"_ She whined. _"Don't go, not yet."_ She whispered. _"Please."_

"Alright, I'll stay on the phone with you until you fall asleep." I said quietly. I shifted to get comfortable in my bed.

_"Sing to me?"_ She asked quietly.

I smiled. "I don't know about that baby."

_"Come on."_ She giggled. _"You have a great voice Troy."_

I sighed. "what song?"

She yawned again, causing me to yawn. _"Singer's choice."_ She giggled.

"I kept my feelings under lock and key,  
Couldn't let you see them,  
Even though it was killing me.  
You can't imagine all the time I spent,  
Wishing you were mine.  
I just know if we ever kissed, we'd go crazy  
Baby, for the rest of our lives."

I started in the middle of the song but I could tell by the giggling she didn't care. I smiled as I started singing again after the brief pause.

"I wanna be there when you wake up,  
Be more than just your friend.  
Baby there's no mistaking,  
You're the love I want to be in."

She was quiet. "Gabi?" I asked quietly. She didn't respond. "Gabi?" I asked again. I smiled, I knew she was asleep. "Goodnight beautiful." I hung up the phone and put my phone on it's charger. I rolled over and fell asleep.

I slept well that night. I woke up feeling good actually. I jumped in the shower and got dressed. I grabbed the letters and put them in my backpack. I walked down stairs and my dad looked up at me. "Hey kid."

"Hey dad, good morning." I said putting my backpack in the chair next to him.

"You're in a good mood today." He noted, watching me as I grabbed a Pop Tart.

I just shrugged. "I asked Gabi to be my girlfriend this weekend."

Dad smirked at me. "That's what it is.."

"What what is?" Mom asked coming into the kitchen with her empty coffee cup.

"Your son has a girlfriend." Dad said with a small smile to my mom.

Mom smiled at me. "Oh honey!" She gave me a big hug. "Who is it?"

"Gabi." I said smiling. "I asked her this weekend."

Mom nodded. "That explains the hickey on your neck."

My cheeks started burning. I looked at my wrist as if there was a watch. "I'm going to be late for school. Bye mom, Bye dad." I grabbed my backpack and raced out the door.

I got into my truck and drove to school. I parked in my usual spot and got out. I ran my hands through my hair looking at my reflection in the window. I threw my backpack on my shoulder and closed the door. I walked into the school and up to my locker. I get out my books and felt two arms wrap around me. I turned around.

"Hey handsome." Gabi said, keeping her arms around me.

I smiled down at her and kissed her nose. "Hey beautiful."

"I woke up at my 3 and plugged in my phone." She giggled. "But I didn't have any trouble falling asleep after that."

I smiled at her. "I'm glad." I put my hand on her cheek and kissed her lips gently. "I missed sleeping next to you."

"I missed sleeping next to you too." She said, leaning her face on my hand. "As much as I'd like to stay here with you, I'm going to be late for class." She pouted. "Walk me?"

"Of course." I grabbed my book and closed my locker. I laced my fingers in between hers. "My mom called me out this morning for my hickey."

She giggled. "I'm sorry. Luckily, I have make up to cover mine." We got to her class and she leaned up and kissed me. "Bye handsome."

I kissed her back then kissed the top of her head. "See you at lunch." She let go of my hand and went in the classroom. I turned and walked towards the councilors office.

I knocked on the door and Ms. Palmer looked up at me. "Hey Mr. Bolton, how can I help you?"

I came in and sat down. "I've been thinking and I want to see if I can possible get accepted to one of these schools on a scholarship." I pulled out the letters from the scouts and handed them to her. "It doesn't have to be fall cause I think the deadline already passed but maybe the semester after that."

She looked at me and raised her eyebrows. "A change of heart from when we last spoke Mr. Bolton." She said, looking through the envelopes. "You need to get to class, but I'll see what I can do. I'll call you in sometime later today." she pulled out a pass and signed it. "Bye Mr. Bolton."

"Thank you Ms. Palmer." I took the pass and walked out of her room and to my first class.

I talked to my first couple of teachers and they were more than happy to help me raise my grades. By the time lunch rolled around, I was still feeling pretty good. I walked over to our usual lunch table. Gabi was sitting there reading a book. I walked over to her. "I've never seen you sit so still." I smirked.

She looked up at me. "Very funny." She rubbed her eyes. "My contacts are itching."

I sat next to her. "I didn't know you wear contacts." I kissed her cheek.

"Only for school. I can't read the things on the board clearly." She explained. "How was your day?"

I smiled at her. "Really good. My teachers are helping me pulling my grades up and I talked to Ms. Palmer and she is going to help me get into college."

A big smile spread across her face. "Babe! That's great!" She hugged me tightly. She kissed me. "I'm so proud of you. I knew you can do it. You just need a little nudge. That's all."

I smiled and kissed the top of her head. "All I needed was you." I kissed her ear gently. "So, do you have glasses?"

She nodded. "I do…"

"I want to see them on you." I said looking at her. "Please"

Gabi rolled her eyes. "Maybe, one day."

I put my backpack on my lap. "I think you should come over and help me with my huge pile of homework." I smiled at her.

She giggled. "I'll see what my crazy mom says."

I leaned down and kissed her lips. I love you. I looked at her smiling face. I put a strand of hair behind her ear. It's not a good time to tell her. Not here. Somewhere special. "Hey, What's up?" Chad said, walking with Taylor. Ryan, Zeke and Sharpay were hot on their heels. They all sat down and we started talking. I put my hand on Gabi's knee. Once the bell rang I walked Gabi to her class and was walking back to mine.

"Mr. Bolton." I heard from behind me. I turned around to see Ms. Palmer She was standing in front of her office. I walked over to her. "I have some news, please come in."

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**Dun Dun Dun... Just kidding. Song: Love I wanna Be In- Jason Aldean **

**Don't forget to review :)**


	10. Interruption

**Shit guys! I'm sorry. I swore i put the right one in. I feel so silly. I'm sorry everybody is so confused. Yes that chapter was from TGML I made a mistake. I need to be more careful. I did upload it at like 2 in the morning and i was half asleep. Anyway I'm so so so so sorry for the mix up :( forgive me? :)**

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**Troy's POV**

I sat in Ms. Palmer's office. She left to go get something from the printer in the teacher's lounge. I looked at all of her cheesy inspirational posters. Every class room at East High has the same set. There is one with Dolphins, a forest, and always one unicorn poster. Why unicorns? Why? I sat back and I heard Ms. Palmer come in.

"Well Mr. Bolton. I have contacted those schools along with some others and indeed their deadline has past." My smile dropped. "But there is 3 college who are very interested in you for basketball. Albuquerque community college is willing to give you a full scholarship if you play basketball for two years."

"Really?" I asked.

She smiled at me. "I think that is your best offer Troy. I've printed out some paper work that you have to revise with your parents. You will also have to set up an appointment with the an admissions advisor at the college." She stapled a couple pieces of paper together and handed them to me. "Let me know by the end of the week."

She signed another note for me and handed it to me. "Thank you for everything Ms. Palmer. You are a miracle worker."

She laughed. "I am not. I just want to see you succeed Mr. Bolton. I know you can do it. Whatever changed you mind, don't forget it because it is working in your favor." I got up and put my back pack on my shoulders. "Get to class Troy."

I chuckled and walked out. I got to class and gave my teacher my note. I got through the day with the offer burning in the back of my mind. I wanted to get out of New Mexico and this was the first step. Gabi made her way over to my locker after school. She leaned against the locker next to mine. I looked at her and she had her glasses on. I broke into a big smile.

"Don't even start Troy Bolton." She shifted the glasses on her face. "My contacts were bothering me and I had these so there you go."

I smiled at her and kissed her lips. "You look so hot Gabi."

Gabriella rolled her eyes. "I'm not into the whole sexy librarian thing so don't even think about it."

I chuckled and closed my locker. "No comment." She wrapped her arms around my neck and I wrapped my arms around her waist. "You look very beautiful today though." I kissed her nose. "Did you talk to your mom?"

She shook her head. "Not yet." I took the glasses from her face and put them on. She giggled and looked at me. "You look ridiculous."

The glasses blurred my vision. "Glasses aren't for me." I handed them back to her and winked. "I have 20/20 vision."

"Well aren't you just special." She said, smirking at me. She pulled out her phone and wrapped my arm around her shoulder. She called her mom. "Hey mom… It was good… I don't know yet… oh alright… I will then… Can I bring Troy?… Mom… Come on Were going to see Papa not have sex… Jesus Katherine… Whatever Mom…. Can you stop being like this?" I walked to the truck and unlocked the doors. She got in and kept talking.

Chad came over to me. "Whoa, who's she yelling at?"

"Her mom." I said, shrugging. "I prefer not to get involved. She may be small…"

Chad laughed. "Well I'll see you tomorrow. Bye man… oh, my mom wants you to come over one day. She says she misses you." He said with a roll of his eyes.

I chuckled. "Alright, Tell her to make some cupcakes and I'm there." Chad laughed and walked away. I opened the door and got in. I looked over at Gabi who's head was on the dashboard. "You alright baby?" I put my hand on her back and rubbed it slowly.

She sighed. "Same shit, different day." I wrapped my arms around her and she leaned against me. I kissed the top of her head. "Before we go to your house I want you to meet Papa Rocks."

"Really?" I asked her, she sent me a small smile. "I can't wait to meet him."

"He's going to love you." She said playing with the hem of my shirt.

We sat for a while and decided to get going. We buckled our seatbelts and Gabi showed me where to go. We pulled into a care home and I parked the truck in visitors parking. The home looks very nice and clean. It was big too and probably very expensive. I felt kind of out of place. Gabi must have sensed this and grabbed my hand. We walked in.

"Welcome to Lakeside Care Home. How can I help you?" The lady at the counter said.

"We're here to see Johnny Dutch. I'm his granddaughter Gabriella." Gabi said.

She handed us two visitors passes and pointed down the hall. "Last door on the right."

I smiled at her. "Thank you."

We made our way to the back. I couldn't help but sneak a peak in each room we passed. I couldn't really see much. We got to the last door on the right and Gabi opened it slowly. I rubbed her back for encouragement. I knew it was hard for her to see her grandpa like this. It'd be hard for anybody.

"Hey Papa." She walked in and I closed the door behind us. "How are you feeling?"

The man on the bed looked up at us and his face lit up. "Hey little girl, come give papa a hug." She hugged her grandpa tightly. "I'm feeling fine." He started coughing a little bit.

She pulled away from him and smiled a little bit. "Papa, this is my boyfriend. Troy Bolton. He knew who you were but not dad, can you believe it?"

Her grandfather laughed and looked at me. "Good man." I walked over and shook his hand. "It's nice to meet you Troy. Bolton.. Huh? Related to Jack Bolton by any chance?"

I nodded. "That's my father."

"He was a hell of a basketball player back when Katie went to East High. My assistant told me we just hired him full time today." He looked up at me. "What happened with basketball?"

"They had me instead." I said.

"I'm sure my mother has told you plenty of stories about Troy." Gabi said rolling her eyes. "I don't know what's going on with her lately. She is literally driving me insane papa."

Her Papa Rocks chuckled and looked at her. "That's your mother for you. She just hates to see her baby grow up."

"She has a funny way of showing it." Gabi said, sitting in a chair next to his bed.

We talked for a little while longer before we decided to leave. Mr. Dutch was a great man, he was very similar to Gabriella even if they didn't really look related. We walked back to my truck and I drove to my house. We got out and grabbed our backpacks. We went up to my room.

"So first we are going to finish all your homework by… 4 so we can have a little alone time before I have to go home." She said. "So lets get started."

I followed her directions and she helped me with homework while simultaneously doing her own. I finished my homework quickly. Gabi was extremely smart and helpful. I laid on my bed and closed my eyes.

"I'm done!' Gabi said, I heard the thud of her book closing. She crawled up on the bed with me. She smacked my cheek. "wake up."

I smiled. "I'm awake." I opened my eyes and looked at her. "You look very sexy in those glasses." I kissed her cheek, pulling her closer to me.

"Thank you." she cuddled against me. "Papa Rocks likes you."

"He does?" I asked and she nodded. "How can you tell?"

"Because you knew who he was not who my dad was. He loves basketball too." She said kissing my lips. "Who couldn't love you?"

"Your mother." I said chuckling.

She rolled her eyes. "My mother is on a whole other planet. She is oblivious to everybody but herself and Papa." She sighed. "I don't know what her problem is."

"So I talked to Ms. Palmer again and she said that Albuquerque community college will give me a scholarship if I play basketball for them for two years." I looked at her and she looked at me and smiled. "I still have to talk about it with my parents."

She leaned her head on my chest. "That's great baby. I think you should take the offer." She looked up at me and kissed my lips. I kissed her lips firmly. She wrapped her arms around my neck. I wrapped my arms around her waist. She pulled her lips away from mine. "That song you sang me last night. What's it called?"

"The Love I Wanna Be In by Jason Aldean." She smiled at me and got up. "What are you doing?"

She reached in her bag and pulled something out. She handed me 3 Jason Aldean CD's. "For you." She said looking at me.

"What? How'd you get these?" I said sitting up, looking at them They were still in the wrapper.

"I bought them a couple weeks ago. Remember you told me you wanted a Jason Aldean CD I couldn't remember which one so I got all of them" She grinned at me. "Do you like?"

I smiled at her. "I love." I leaned down and kissed her lips firmly. "Thank you baby."

She ran her fingers down my cheek slowly. "You are very welcome." Once we laid back down Gabi's Phone started ringing. She groaned. She answered. "What Mom?… I'm at Troy's… We are doing homework…. Chem, AP Stats and AP Lit… I'm Almost done… I don't know mom. When do you want me home?…. You aren't even at home all the time… I don't want to sit there by myself… Look mom Just because in LA all I did was sit around doesn't mean I'm going to be like that here… That is not why… It's not genetic mom… I can't believe you just said that… Bye Katherine." She hung up the phone and collapsed back on the bed. "I hate my life" She muttered.

I wrapped my arms around her tightly. "don't say that." I hid my face in her neck.

"I'm sorry. She is like a 15 year old girl causing a whole bunch of drama." She closed her eyes. "You will have to sing me something different tonight." she smiled.

I kissed her neck gently. "Anything for you beautiful" We were quiet for a minute. "Maybe you can sing for me tonight."

"We'll see." She said smiling at me. I pulled the glasses off her face and put them on my nightstand. She kissed my lips slowly. "I have to go home soon or I will be on the first flight back to LA." She looked at the time. "We have a half hour to make out so lets get started."

I chuckled and wrapped my arms around her. She crawled on top of me and kissed my lips firmly. I felt her tongue press against my lips, begging for entrance. I parted my lips and she darted her tongue in my mouth. I brushed my tongue against hers and her hands made their way up my shirt.

I heard the front door shut and thumping up the stairs. "Troy!" My dad yelled. I pushed Gabi off me and she fell on the floor and cursed. My door swung open. "Troy! You'll never guessed-" He looked on the floor and saw Gabi. "Gabi, Why are you on the floor?"

"Your son pushed me off the bed. We were play fighting." She giggled and got back on the bed. "How are you Mr. Bolton?"

"Great! It's a great day. Troy I got a job at Albuquerque Rocks! Full time! With Benefits!" My father smiled. "Isn't that great?"

"That's great dad!" I smiled at him. "Did you tell mom?"

He nodded. "Yeah, she's on her way home. We're going out to dinner. Gabi you are more than welcome to come with us." He said smiling at Gabs.

"I'd love to but my crazy mom wants me home soon. But I am very happy for you. Congrats Mr. Bolton." Gabi said, putting her hand on my knee.

Dad couldn't wipe the smile off his face. "Next time then. I'm going to go make reservations for 7" My dad walked out of the room and closed the door behind him.

Gabi hit my chest. "Ow!" I said, looking at her.

"That's for throwing me off the bed, you asshole." I chuckled and pulled her against me.

"I'm sorry baby, how can I make it better?" I left a trail of kissed down her jaw line.

Gabi giggled quietly. "A kiss would be nice." I smiled and placed my lips on top of hers. "Thank you." she murmured against my lips. Her phone started ringing and she sighed. "Hello?" She answered blankly. "I'm on my way Mother… Whatever… Dad wouldn't keep me lock away at home alone… I stayed there because I wanted to be there, I don't want to be alone with you… You should be happy I made friends…God you make me want to rip my hair out… Bye Katherine." She hung up and grabbed my pillow and screamed.

"Are you okay babe?" I rubbed her back slowly.

She set the pillow down and nodded. "I'm fine… I'm going to call my dad really quick." She laid back and called her father. "Hey daddy… I'm sorry I didn't know… It will be quick I promise… Please… fine… I'll call you whenever then… Whatever dad, thanks for listening." She hung up and put her head in my chest. "Can I move in with you?"

"As much as I'd like that I think your mom would have a fit." I kissed her forehead and hugged her tightly. "Want me to take you home?" She nodded. "Let's go."

She went to get up and I pulled her back and kissed her lips gently. She smiled at me and pulled me up with her. I grabbed my keys and my phone. She grabbed her books, walking downstairs. I followed her and we walked out the door. "I don't want to go home." She admitted.

"I'm sorry baby" I kissed her forehead and unlocked the truck. She threw her backpack in and climbed in. I got in and started the truck. "I'll sing you two songs tonight."

I glanced over at her and a smile crept on her face. "Alright." She clicked her seatbelt in and I held her hand as I started driving to her house. She turned on the radio and let out a breath.

"You be my glass of wine  
I'll be your shot of whiskey,  
You be my sunny day,  
I'll be your shade tree,  
You be my honey suckle,  
I'll be your honey bee."

She looked over at me as I sang her the song on the radio. She giggled quietly and squeezed my hand.

"Yeah that came out a little country,  
But every word was right on the money,  
And I got you smiling, honey, right back at me.  
Now hold on cause I ain't done,  
There's more where that came from,  
Well, you know I'm just havin' fun but seriously."

She smiled up at me. "you are just too cute." She leaned over and gave me a kiss on the cheek as I turned on her street. "Who is this?"

"Blake Shelton." I smiled at her with a glance. "The one on the Voice."

"Oh! He's cute as hell." She giggled.

I laughed. "I know right." I rolled my eyes and she hit my leg. I pulled up to her gate and pressed the code. I pulled in front of her door and got out. I helped her out of the truck and I took her backpack out of the truck and handed it to her, closing the door.

"Thank you for taking me home." She said, playing with my fingers. "I'm so proud of you, I want you to go to college. You can do anything you set your mind to, Troy. I believe in you." I smiled as she ran her fingers through my hair. I leaned down and kissed her lips slowly.

"Gabriella?" I said quietly after I pulled away from the kiss.

"Yeah babe?" She looked up at me with her chocolate eyes.

I looked straight into her eyes. My fingers trailed down her cheek and my thumb brushed along her bottom lip. "I-." I began.

The door swung open. "Gabriella, What are-" We turned to see Gabi's mom standing in the door way. She cleared her throat. "It's best if you come inside now." She said, glancing at me. "Goodnight Troy."

"I- uh." Gabi started as her mom gripped her wrist. "Bye Troy." She said quietly as she got pulled into the house.

"uh, bye?" The door closed in my face. I let out a breath, walking back to my truck.

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**Don't forget to Review. Gabi's mom is a biotch.**


	11. Aggravation

**This is because i feel so bad about the last chapter. So, Enjoy :)**

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**Gabriella's POV**

I was saying goodnight to Troy and my mother pulled me inside. You cannot fathom the anger that is building within me right now. My mom pulled me all the way into the dining room and sat me down. You have to be kidding me. I let out a breath as she let me go.

"We're having steak." My mother said quietly, placing a piece of steak on my plate. "Eat up." I just watched her as she ate her steak nonchalantly. I placed my elbow on the table and propped my chin on the knuckles of my hand. She looked up and me and stopped moving. "What?"

I blinked at her. "What?… WHAT? YOU'VE GOT TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME." I yelled and she flinched. I let out a breath and calmed myself down. I gripped the fork on the table in front of me. "I was just saying goodbye to my boyfriend and you ripped me away like that? Do you know how bad I feel right now? How rude that was of you? I don't give two shits what you think of him okay? Whatever thing you have against him or his parents… keep it to yourself alright? Jesus Mom." I threw the fork down and walked out of the room.

"Gabriella… Gabriella Get back here." My mother said as I walked away. "NOW."

I stopped walking before I got to the door. "What Mother?"

"Look, Gabriella. I don't want you seeing him okay? His parents are teen parents. His father works for us." She emphasized us.

"He does not work for US. He works for a company your father built from the ground up. Just because you grew up like a spoiled brat doesn't mean you can talk down to the people who don't have the stuff we do." I let out a breath. "How can you be so vapid?"

"I'm just looking out for you Gabriella." She said, crossing her arms. "I don't want you to get hurt."

I raised my eyebrows at her. "That is utter bullshit."

"I'm going to call your father." She said walking towards the house phone.

"Go ahead mom. I'd rather be in LA then be anywhere with you." I walked out the room and slammed the door. I walked upstairs and called Troy. He didn't answer. "GOD DAMN IT" I yelled in frustration. I laid on my bed and looked at the time. He is at dinner with his parents. I picked up my phone and called Bree.

_"Hey, hey, hey."_ She answered. _"Long time no hear."_

I sighed. "I know. I'm sorry. I went camping last weekend, ever since I've been home my mother is driving me insane." I bit my lip. "I have a boy friend."

Bree squealed. _"What! When did this happen?"_

"This weekend. It's Troy. He is seriously the sweetest." I said, smiling to myself. "He is adorable."

_"I can't wait to meet him!"_ She said. _"What does he look like?"_

"I'll send you a picture. We took some really cute ones when we went camping." I bit my lip. "I miss you. I want you to come out here."

_"I want to too. I'll come to your graduation! Only if you come to mine."_ She said.

"If I last that long.. Seriously Bibi, I don't know how long I can take it." I let out a sigh of frustration. "My mother is… remember at the home coming dance when she called Marcy Ellison a bitch and just walked away."

She snorted. _"Yeah? That was so awkward."_

"When I was saying bye to Troy She opened the door grabbed my wrist and pulled me inside. IN FUCKING SIDE." I yelled. I took another breath to calm me down. "I just.." I trailed off.

_"Damn. Katherine is in total bitch mode or what?"_ Bree said, laughing a little bit. _"I'm so sorry sweetie."_

I opened my mouth to say something but my mom came in holding the phone. "Dad wants to talk to you." she said.

"Let me call you back Bree. Love you." I said.

_"Love you too, bye."_ She hung up.

I grabbed the phone from my mother and she stood there with her arms crossed. "Can you leave?" I said looking up at her. She shook her head. I sighed. I put my phone up to my ear. "Hello?"

_"Hey Gabi, I'm sorry I hadn't had the chance to call you back."_ Dad said from the other line.

"Well.. It wouldn't be the first time." I sighed. "What did she tell you?"

_"That you were yelling and being defiant."_ He said. _"Can you just cut your mother some slack? She is trying to take care of your grandfather and you. We just finalized the divorce and you are running around with some boy."_

"He is not some boy. He is my boyfriend and We are just being teenagers Dad. He understands that I'm leaving for California and he has his own plans too. I don't want to sit in this house all alone all day. I made friends. Shouldn't you both be happy for me?" I said, all this arguing was making me really tired. "Look dad, I love you and I love you too mom." I said looking over at her. "But I just want to be a 17 year old girl for once in my life. With my friends who don't care that my dad designs clothes and has money."

_"Aye, Gabriella."_ He sighed. He mumbled something in Spanish i didn't understand. _"I have a call waiting from the new contract that I'm working on. I'll call you tomorrow, I love you Gabriella."_ He hung up.

"Goodbye too you too dad." I said sarcastically handing the phone to my mom. "I'm going to bed."

She sighed. "Please just eat something."

"Fine." I walked downstairs and I ate a cold steak in awkward silence. Once I finished I bolted up to my room. I ran a bath and soaked for a while, running the whole day through my head. I got out and changed into my pajamas and got into bed. I found my phone and saw a missed call from Troy. I smiled to myself and called him back.

_"Hey beautiful, what's going on?"_ He said in a sexy, sleepy voice.

I smiled and shut off the lights. "Mother driving me crazy. I'm sorry she pulled me away like that. It was rude of her. I ripped her a new one, trust me."

He chuckled. _"It's alright. My parents are happy again, it's been a long time._" I tried to stifle a yawn but it came out anyway. _"You tired?"_

"Exhausted. I've been arguing with my parents since you left." I admitted. "I just want to wake up and see you, You'll make me feel better."

He chuckled. _"I'm glad I can make you feel better. I miss you already"_ I bit my lip, smiling. _"I can't thank you enough for my CD's I was going to say that before your mom opened the door."_

"It's not a problem babe. Anything to make you happy." I murmured.

_"You make me happy, baby."_ He yawned himself. _"I'm tired too."_

"One song, then sleep… I'll try to stay awake, I promise." I giggled quietly. "Please"

_"Alright, One song."_ He cleared his throat and I giggled quietly.

_"If I could take you in,_  
_Feeling you in beneath my skin,_  
_Then I could slip away_  
_With you as a poison in my veins._  
_I don't wanna fall asleep alone,_  
_And wake up knowing that I died without the one._  
_So tell me what I gotta do to win you over,_  
_You'll never have to wonder if you need another._  
_You'll never have to wonder if I understand,_  
_And every time you reach for me you'll find a hand out."_

Troy stopped singing quietly. I giggled. "That was cute, What song is that?" I asked.

_"Over by Blake Shelton."_ He yawned again.

I yawned after he did. "I think we should get some sleep baby." I said quietly. "What do you think?"

_"I think you should sing to me."_ I giggled. He offered. _"Gabi's choice."_

I sighed. "Alright" I let a breath out.

"There's something 'bout the way the street looks when it's just rained.  
There's a glow off the pavement.  
You walk me to the car and you know I wanna ask you to dance  
Right there, in the middle of the parking lot.  
We're driving down the road, I wonder if you know  
I'm trying so hard not to get caught up now.  
But you're just so cool.  
Run your hands through your hair,  
Absentmindedly making me want you.

And I don't know how it gets better than this,  
You take my hand and drag me head first fearless.  
And I don't know why but with you I'd dance in a storm  
In my best dress fearless."

_"You have a beautiful voice."_ He said as I finished singing.

I blushed. "No I do not."

_"You really do, You are good at everything remember?"_ He chuckled. _"Baby, I'm about to fall asleep."_

"I'll let you go. I'll see you tomorrow, bright and early." I bit my lip. "Goodnight handsome."

_"Goodnight Beautiful."_ He said quietly. _"Sleep well."_

We hung up the phone and I tried to calm the butterflies in my stomach. I smiled to myself and curled up in my blankets. I closed my eyes and relived the weekend with Troy. Camping with him was perfection. I just wanted to spend every minute with him.

My alarm on my phone rang in my eyes. I looked at the time and pressed the dismiss button. I got up and went to the bathroom. My hair was a mess. I brushed it out only making it frizzy. Shit, fuck it. I threw it up in a sloppy bun. I put some shorts and a t-shirt on. I pulled my vans on and put some light makeup on. I grabbed my phone looking at the time. Taylor would be here any minute. I got my things and went downstairs and grabbed the lunch money my mom left on the counter.

I heard a honk outside but it wasn't Taylor's car. I grabbed my backpack and walked outside to see Troy standing in front of his truck. I smiled at locked up the house. I ran over to him and wrapped my arms around him tightly. "Good morning beautiful" Troy mumbled against my lips.

"Good morning handsome." I kissed him again. "Not that I'm complaining but why are you here?"

He chuckled. "Taylor asked me to pick you up. She was doing some smart people meet up thing at U of A and she forgot to tell you she couldn't pick you up." I giggled. He kissed my lips again. 'I missed you."

I smiled up at him. "I missed you too, Let's go we're going to be late." We climbed into his truck and he turned it on, driving out of my drive way. The CD's that I bought him sat on the seat next to me. I picked one up and took the packaging off it and put it in the CD player. I pressed play and sat back, buckling my seat belt.

I scooted towards the middle and kicked my feet up next to me. I leaned against Troy's shoulder as he drove us to school. We were halfway into the third song as we pulled up to school. I sighed. Only 3 and a half weeks until schools out. He kissed my cheek gently. "Ready to go beautiful?" Troy's voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I looked up at him, nodding.

"Let's go." I grabbed my backpack and hopped out of his truck. He met me on the passenger's side and wrapped his hands around mine. "Did you tell your parents about your offer?" I looked up at him as we walked into the building.

"Yeah I did, they're happy for me. I have to just drop off the papers with Ms. Palmer later." He walked me to my locker. "You look beautiful today." He leaned against the locker next to mine, staring at me.

I smiled and shook my head. "My hair is a hot mess." His hands reached up and touched my bun. I smacked his hand. "No, no, no. What part of hot mess did you not understand?"

He chuckled. "Come on , I bet it's not that bad."

I rolled my eyes and grabbed the books I needed and closed my locker. He pulled the hair tie out of my hair gently. My hair fell down my shoulder. I looked at him with one eyebrow raised. "See, I told you Hot mess."

He smiled at me and smirked. "It happens to look very sexy." I rolled my eyes and reached over for my hair tie. "Nuh-uh, leave it down."

"Troy!" I whined. "Come on." I reached for it again and he put it on his wrist. I opened my locker again and found a clip. I looked in the mirror and put my half my hair into a clip and shut the locker. "Compromise."

Troy laughed and kissed my cheek. "You are too cute." The first bell rang. "Let me walk you to class." He wrapped his arm around my waist.

"What are we doing for lunch?" I asked him, looking over at him.

"Whatever you want. What do you want to eat?" He asked me, opening the door for me.

I slid my hand in his back pocket and shrugged. "Troy's pick." I winked at him.

He laughed. "Alright, I'll let you know by lunch." He walked me up to my classroom. He kissed my lips slowly. I smiled into the kiss and I looked up at him. "I'll see you soon beautiful."

I gave him a quick kiss. "I'll see you later." I pulled away from him and walked to me seat. I looked over at him and he winked at me before he walked off. I looked over to see Michaela looking at me. Awkward. I turned back to my books and opened it.

"Gabriella right?" I heard a voice from next to me.

I looked up to see Michaela looking at me again, waiting for an answer. "Yeah." I cleared my throat. "You're Michaela?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I am. It's nice to meet you."

"We met before, on my first day. We had to do a group project." I mentioned and she let out a breath.

"Right, right. I forgot." She smiled sympathetically. I gave her a tight smile back. "So.. Troy Bolton huh?"

I nodded. "Yep, My boyfriend." Shit this was awkward.

"We went out freshman year." She said quietly. "He is sweet."

"He told me." I turned my attention to her. "about you and his freshman year."

Michaela's smile faltered. "Yeah, I felt so bad for the longest time. I'm happy he moved on."

"Me too." I turned back to my book and smirked to myself. This bitch. She was going to pull some bullshit card out of her pocket. I call them like I see them.

"I miss him. I never should have broken his heart." she murmured from beside me.

I scoffed and bit my lip from saying something I'd regret later. The teacher finally walked into the room and we got on with the lesson. As soon as that class was over I walked out of the classroom. I walked to my next class thankfully Taylor was in that class with me. I needed to talk to somebody. I took a seat and Taylor walked in a little while later.

"Hey girl, Sorry I forgot to tell you earlier about this morning." Taylor smiled apologetically and sat next to me.

"It's not a problem it was a nice surprise." I sighed. "So guess who talked to me this morning?"

She looked at me confused. "Who?"

"Michaela." I said with a smirk.

"Oh lord, What did she have to say." Taylor said leaning closer to me, intrigued.

"First she was like oh I went out with Troy, like I didn't know. Then she was like I miss him I shouldn't have broken his heart." I sent Taylor an 'are you kidding me?' look. She had an 'un-oh' look on her face. "But I didn't say anything mean. I kept my mouth shut."

Taylor sighed. "That girl is a bitch."

"Excuse me." A tall blonde girl sitting behind me looking at her. "I'm not going to just sit here and listen to you talk smack about my best friend."

I whipped my head around to look at the blonde girl. I didn't even know her name. I didn't really care. "Look bitch. This has nothing to do with you. I don't give a shit about 'your best friend' She is a bitch and a bull shitter and I will call her out on it okay? So you can go run off and tell her, I don't care. Just mind your own damn business alright?" I kept my voice at a calm level.

She scoffed and I turned around. Taylor looked at me. "Couldn't have said it better myself." I laughed.

It felt like forever until lunch rolled around. I felt like I was stuck in some 14 year old drama, I was kind of the instigator but Michaela was being a bitch. I put my things in my locker and shut the door. I saw Troy standing there looking at me. I jumped "Holy shit." I covered my heart.

Troy smiled at me and chuckled. "Did I scare you?" I nodded. He wrapped his arms around me. "I'm sorry baby."

I giggled. "It's alright. It's been a long morning." I rested my head on his chest. I let out a sigh.

He kissed the top of my head. "Are you ready to go babe?" I nodded. He put my backpack over his shoulder and shut my locker for me. I wrapped my arm around his waist and leaned against him, walking to his truck. We hopped in and drove to Troy's house. "I have stuff for sandwiches, or we can go somewhere else?" He offered.

"A PB and J sounds great actually." I smiled at him getting out of the truck. He let us in and I laid on his couch. "I need a nap."

Troy chuckled in the kitchen. "How is your day going?"

I sighed. "Michaela misses you. She feels bad for breaking your heart, she told me." Troy scoffed. "and her friend. The blonde one was all up on Mine and Taylor's asses cause we were talking about Michaela in front of her."

"Peyton is a bitch." He said from the kitchen. "Don't listen to them. I would never get back with Michaela." He came from the kitchen and I sat up. He handed me a sandwich and sat next to me. "You are the apple of my eye." He winked at me.

I couldn't help but smile. "Cheesy." I gave him a kiss. "I like it." We ate our sandwiches in silence. When we were finished I sat on his lap. I kissed his lips gently.

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**Don't forget to review :)**


	12. Vacation

**Gabriella's POV**

**Two weeks later**

I was going down to California for a weekend to see all my friends graduate. I was leaving at 7 on today and coming back on Sunday. Troy took me home after school today and was helping me pack. He sat on my bed and watched me, throw things into a small duffle bag.

"What's the weather like in LA?" He asked me, looking at a bra I threw on the bed. He picked it up and smirked. "This is cute why don't you wear this more often?"

I giggled and took it away from him. "I do wear it. It's usually under a shirt." He chuckled. "It depends on the day."

I stuffed the bra into my duffle bag and zipped it up. "All done?" He asked me and I nodded. I climbed up on the bed and he wrapped his arms around me. He kissed down my neck slowly. "What bra are you wearing today?" He ran his tongue along my neck slowly.

I giggled quietly, running my hands through his hair. "You will never know." His hand made its way under my shirt. He started lifting it up slowly as he sucked on the sweet spot on my neck. My eyes automatically shut. "Troy." I moaned quietly. "N-no hickeyys." I pulled his head away from my neck.

"Sorry baby." He smiled sheepishly. I hit his chest, he wrapped his arms around me and kissed my lips. He pouted. "I'm sorry."

I rolled my eyes and giggled. "It's alright I guess." I kissed his lips gently. "I'm going to miss you." I pouted.

He kissed my pouted lip. "I'll miss you too baby, so much." I cuddled against him. "We only have a week until Graduation. Are you excited?"

I nodded. "It's bitter sweet." He put his face into my neck. "I'm excited to graduate but that means I only have 2 and a half more months with you." I played with the hair on the back of his neck.

"Don't remind me." He mumbled into my neck. He let out a sigh. I lifted his chin and kissed his lips slowly.

"Gabriella, We have-" Mom opened the door and looked at us. We pulled apart and she shifted uncomfortably. "Gabriella, we have to be at the airport in 30 minutes. Are you ready?"

Troy sat up and looked away. "Yeah I just finished packing." I said quietly. This was awkward.

"Alright. Well you have 30 minutes." She left the door open and walked off.

I let out a breath and looked at Troy. "I'm sorry."

He shrugged. "It's alright I guess." He kissed my lips slowly. "I guess I should get going then."

"come to the airport with me." I bit my bottom lip. "My mom will only drop me off. You know what. I'll just have you take me." I sat up. "Mom!" I yelled.

Mom came over to my room and stood in my doorway. "What Gabriella?"

"You can finish working. Troy will take me to the airport." My mother raised her eyebrows.

"I don't know Gabriella. I'm sure he has other things to do." She clasped her hands together.

I rolled my eyes. "Don't talk about Troy like he is not in the room. Is it alright if you take me to the airport Troy?" I looked at him.

"It isn't a problem Mrs. Montez." He said looking at her.

"You can call me Ms. Dutch." She said bitterly. "I guess I can let you take her Troy."

I smiled at her. "Thank you mom."

"Just don't be late." Mother said, as she walked away.

Troy looked at me and kissed my cheek. "You hungry?"

I nodded. "We can get some food at the airport."

"We better get going then." He smirked at me. I bit my lip and giggled.

We gathered my things and I got my ticket. Troy handed me his keys because he forgot his backpack upstairs. I turned on his truck. His gas tank was almost empty. He came out and got in the truck. "I think we have to stop at the gas station first." I pointed to his gas gauge.

"Oh alright." He looked down at it and put his seatbelt on. I put mine on and we left. He drove to the gas station and hopped out. "Gabi!" He called after me. I walked inside and gave the attendent a 50 dollar bill and told him the number and I walked out. Troy glared at me. "Gabriella. You didn't have to do that."

"I know. I wanted to." I knew his ego was a little hurt but I hopped in his truck and put my seatbelt back on.

Troy pumped his gas and put the cap back on. He got back in the truck and shut the door. "You didn't have to do that." He repeated.

"You are taking me to the airport and I wont get to see you for two days so it's the least I can do." I leaned over and gave him a kiss. "It's okay" I whispered to him.

He grunted and looked at the road and turned the truck on. I scooted closer to him and rubbed his thigh slowly. "Gabi." He said quietly. I moved my hand up his thigh further. "Gabriella." He said sternly.

I pouted and kissed his cheek. "Stop being grumpy." I whined. "I'll sing to you?" I offered. He nodded and started driving. I pretty much memorized the Jason Aldean CD in the player. It was his newest one. I turned it to on one of my favorite songs.

"Ain't no cloud up in my sky,  
Couldn't worry If I tried,  
I got an open road just air and me,  
To pick you up and take you for a ride.  
I got a new shine on my car,  
The sun is tanning my left arm,  
And while I'm waitin' on the red light,  
I'm burnin up a little air guitar."

I pretended to play the air guitar and he glanced over at me. He chuckled at me and shook his he started singing with me.

"Turn it up a little bit louder,  
Turn it up I love this song.  
Come on girl the world is ours,  
Let's do something right or wrong.  
Life is short and lets go live it.  
Ain't no time for wasting time,  
Days like these they go by way too fast.  
Days like these you wanna make 'em last."

We started laughing. "You're twang is ridiculous." I muttered as I turned down the song.

Troy chuckled. 'It's not my fault! You can't sing country music without a twang! It's illegal."

I rolled my eyes. "Sure baby." We stopped at a red light and he leaned over and kissed my lips. "You are so handsome." I said to him as he kissed my nose. "Green light."

He turned his attention away from me and I leaned against him. About 15 minutes later we got to the airport. I grabbed my bag and he walked me into the airport. We agreed on a restaurant and sat down and ate. "What time does your plane leave?" He asked me as we walked into a little waiting area.

"Seven." I looked at my phone and it was 5:15. "I board at 6 though." I showed him my ticket.

"Ohh. First class." He said wiggling his eyebrows. "I've haven't made enough in my life to buy a first class ticket."

I rolled my eyes. "One day you will make enough money to fly first class every flight. You are going to make it big in whatever you do." I sat on his lap and kissed his lips slowly.

He smiled and kissed me back. "What am I going to do without you?" He asked with a pout.

"You will be just fine." I cuddled against him. "I'll be back before you know it. You can catch me a fish and name it okay?"

He chuckled and kissed my neck gently. "Sounds good baby. I'll miss you a lot."

"I'll miss you too." I kissed his lips slowly. I pulled away and looked at my phone. "I have to get going."

"Let me walk you to the security gates." I nodded and we got up. He picked up my duffle bag and walked me over to security. I held his hands and looked up at him. "Call me when you land okay?" I nodded. "I'll miss you, but I'll see you soon."

"I'll miss you too." I leaned up and kissed him. "I'll see you soon." He kissed my knuckles. "Bye babe."

"Bye beautiful." I walked away from him and went through security with no problem. I blew him a kiss and he waved to me before I walked away. I found my terminal and sat at the closest seat I could find. My phone beeped and I looked at it.

_"Don't forget to have a great time. I'll sing you a song tonight."_

I smiled to myself and replied.

_"Can't wait. :)"_

I got called to board and I turned my phone off and got on the airplane. I pulled out my Ipod. Troy and I had filled it with country music one day. I made a play list of every song that Troy sang to me at night and of songs we would sing in the car. I named it of course: Troy.

I scrolled and found the play list. I put my head phone in my ears and closed my eyes as Taylor Swift filled my ears. The plane took off and I made it through most of the play list, getting flashbacks of Troy with every song. I opened up the window and we were about to land. I missed California but I also missed Troy.

We officially landed and I pulled out my phone and called Troy. "Hello?" He answered.

"Hey, I made it safe and sound." I bit my lip. "What are you doing?"

"Missing my girl. I'm glad you made it but dinner is ready." He said.

I smiled to myself. "Alright, I'll call you when I'm ready for bed."

"Talk to you soon baby." He mumbled into the phone.

"Talk to you soon." I hung up and unhooked my seat belt. Mostly everybody was out of the plane. I got up and took my bags out of the upper storage compartment. I slung them over my shoulder and walked out of the airplane. I put my sunglasses on and walked out past security. I looked down at my phone then shoved it in my pocket.

"Gabi!" I heard somebody call my name. My head shot up and I saw Bree waiting for me. She squealed.

I ran over to her and hugged her tightly. Bree had long brown hair like mine. She was Cuban and Portuguese while I was half Puerto Rican and white. We called ourselves distant cousins since we were just an island away. She was shorter than me a hell of a lot skinnier, but not in the skeleton way. She was always the boy crazy one. I lived vicariously though her. I've only had about 3 boyfriends including Troy. She is going through a single phase. "BooBoo!" I finally said as we pulled away. "I miss you!"

"I miss you too little shit." I smiled at her. "Love muffin asked me to pick you up." Like the nicknames we had for each other. Love muffin was my dad. "You look cute! It must be the love in the air or the hickey on your neck." She nudged me.

"Oh shit!" I pulled out my mirror and took a look. "I'm going to kill Troy. I'm just glad you caught it before dad did." I smeared some makeup on my neck. "Good?"

She nodded. "Good." She grabbed my hand and we swung our hands as we walked to her small green car. "So tell me about Troy."

I bit my lip and blushed furiously. "He is amazing. Mom hates him though. Why? I don't know. Papa likes him though. I don't know if dad will like him. I haven't spent a lot of time talking about boyfriends to my dad. Anyway, He is beautiful. He had gorgeous blue eyes… and Abs" She gasped. "I know!"

"That's not why I gasped, look." I looked at Bree. "I got a fucking ticket." She lifted up the paper and groaned.

I couldn't help but giggle. I hugged Bree tightly. "I missed you."

She hit my arm then pulled me in for a hug. "I missed you too."

I got in her car and pulled out my phone. "Let's send an ugly picture to Troy."

"Yes!" She said. I leaned over and made an ugly face and so did Bree. I took the picture and looked at it. "Oh that's a bad one!" She said laughing.

"Right?" I attached it to the message. _"This is what me and Bree do in California."_ I read as I typed.

Bree started driving to my house. "I'm staying over." She said.

"Well of course. I haven't seen you in forever." I pouted. "Is Mandy coming down?"

"Yeah, She's already staying with Kyla." She made a face.

"How has Kyla been?" I asked. Kyla was the clingy friend always hanging on you or stepping in front of you. Or being just moody enough to get on your nerves.

"She's alright. I usually dart out after school but she's always like lets hangout lets go to the mall. Do you know how many times I've been to that fucking mall?" She asked rhetorically. "Too many fucking times."

I giggled. "I'm sorry. At least she'll be on my ass all weekend, not yours." I looked down at my phone. "Troy said we look very attractive."

We pulled up to my gate and she punched in the number and the gate opened. We parked and walked into the garage. Dad wasn't even home. Our housekeeper Ruby greeted us at the door. I hugged her tightly. "Hey Gabi, how is New Mexico?"

"Great. But I miss you and dad. When is he coming in?" Bree and I made our way into the kitchen.

"He said he will be here by 10." Ruby said. "You girls hungry?"

"I am." Bree said.

"I'm really thirsty." I got up and got me and Bree a drink.

"I'll make your usual then Bree?" Ruby offered. Bree nodded.

"Gabi has a boyfriend." Bree blurted out. I smacked her arm.

Ruby turned around. "Gabriella Montez!"

"I know. I should have called you but I wanted to tell you in person." I giggled. Ruby was one of my best friends. She was more of a mother to me than my own mother was.

"Let me see him." Ruby made her way over and I pulled up a picture of Troy and I on my phone. Troy and I sitting on the dock. Taylor took the picture for me. It was my screen saver but I recently changed it to a picture of me and him at the airport. "He is so cute!"

"Right?" I giggled.

"Let me see!" Bree crammed in between us. "Aw! Look at my baby Gabi in love."

I rolled my eyes. "Shut up Bree."

"Gabi!" I heard my dad from behind me while Ruby got to cooking. I hopped off my chair and ran over to him and hugged him tightly. "Hey baby girl."

I smiled at him. "Hi daddy, I missed you"

He kissed the top of my head. "I missed you too. How was your flight?"

"Good, quick." I smiled. "How's work?"

"Busy, busy, busy as always." He sat down with us. "How is your mother?"

I rolled my eyes. "She calls you everyday to complain about me. What do you think? She's being a bitch because I have friends and we do things."

"Gabriella she just wants you to be safe." He countered.

I rolled my eyes again. "We're in the middle of the desert. I'd more likely to get in trouble here. I could join a gang." I offered.

Dad muttered something in Spanish then laughed. "She's just having a hard time. I'm going to bed. Te Amo."

"Love you too dad." Ruby gave Bree a plate of food and sat down with us. I continued showing them pictures of Troy and I. I pouted. "I miss him already."

Bree rolled her eyes. "It's been 5 hours."

"I know but still." I sighed, looking at the wallpaper of my phone.

"This boy must be special." Ruby said, reaching for my phone.

I nodded. "He is something else. He isn't like anybody here. He doesn't care who my dad is. He likes me for me. ADHD spells and all. I caught 3 fish since I've been there. I learned how to skip a rock. I've been on every carnival ride. I went camping. He has the coolest truck ever."

"Somebody is in love." Ruby teased.

"Is it too early to tell him I love him?" I looked from Ruby to Bree.

Bree squealed. "Only say it if you really, truly mean it." She calmed down and looked at me seriously. "Only, if you mean it… and wrap it up."

"Bree." I looked at her wide eyed. "Shush, I know my father is creeping up around here and I don't want him to tell my mom I'm having sex. Because I'm not."

"Sorry." She blushed. "Thank you ruby. This pasta is fabu." I rolled my eyes at the use of the word fabu.

Ruby smiled. "You're welcome sweet heart. I better get going." She kissed my forehead. "See you tomorrow."

"Bye Rubes." I waved as she walked out. I looked over at Bree. "I want a bite." I opened my mouth and she fed me some. "Mmm…"

"So what will we be watching tonight?" Bree asked.

"Your pick." I smiled. Bree finished eating and I put the plate in the sink. I texted Troy.

"You awake?"

_"Yeah, Falling asleep. I miss you."_ He replied.

"Bree I'll be right back." I grabbed my bags and walked upstairs to my room. I called Troy. "Hey honey."

Troy chuckled. _"Hey cupcake."_ He said in his sleepy voice. _"How is my beautiful girl?"_

"Great. Missing her boy." I laid down on my bed. "Bree is staying over and wants to have a movie night so I wanted to say goodnight before you fall asleep."

_"Oh, alright."_ He sounded a little disappointed.

I pouted to myself. "I'm sorry babe. Can you sing to me?"

_"Of course baby. What should I sing tonight?"_ He chuckled.

Bree walked in the room and I looked at her and put my finger to my lips. "Troy's pick." I replied to him. I waved Bree over silently. I put the phone on speakerphone.

_"Hm.. Let me see.."_ I could imagine him debating on a song. _"Of course how could I not think of this song before."_ I giggled quietly. _"ready?"_

"Yeah babe." I felt Bree watching me as I laid on my bed.

He cleared his throat.

_"Do you break things when you get mad?_  
_Eat a box of chocolates when your feeling bad?_  
_Do you paint your toes cause you bite your nails?_  
_Call up mama when all else fails?_  
_Who are you when I'm not around?_  
_When the door is locked and the shades are down?_  
_Do you listen to your music quietly?_  
_When it feels just right are you thinking of me?_  
_I wanna know_  
_I wanna know_  
_I wanna know_  
_My, oh my, you're so good lookin'_  
_But who are you when I'm not lookin'?"_

I bit my lip and looked over at Bree who had a big smile on my face. "Which song is that?"

_"Who are you when I'm not lookin' by Blake Shelton."_ He said with a yawn. _"Did you like it?"_

"I loved it." I smiled to myself. "I'll add it to my play list."

He yawned again. _"Well I'm about to pass out so I'll talk to you tomorrow. Have fun out there."_

"I will. I miss you babe." I said with a sigh. "Goodnight Handsome."

_"I miss you too. Goodnight Beautiful"_ He hung up and I looked up at Bree.

She started squealing. "He can sing too? Jesus Gabi you hit the boyfriend jackpot!" She fell on my bed.

"I don't know how I got so lucky…" I held my phone to my chest.

"Years of bad boyfriends. Good boyfriend karma rolls around. Hopefully mine is coming soon." She laughed quietly. I dug my ipod out of my pocket and bought the song he sang. I added it to the play list. "Shit I need a boyfriend like yours."

I giggled quietly. "Come on lets watch some movies." Bree put some movies in my DVD player and we changed into new our pajamas. I cuddled up to my best friend as we watched movies. I fell asleep in the middle of Twilight. Her pick. Terrible movie. New moon is decent. The third one was good.

Bree woke me up early. She had to leave for her graduation. Once she left I pulled out my phone. I called my mom. _"Hello Gabriella. You forgot to call me."_ She answered.

"I know. I'm sorry. Bree met me at the airport and I just lost all track of time. I got here safely. Dad says hello." I lied but she didn't care.

_"It's fine. I'm glad you're safe with your father. Have fun at graduation."_ She said.

"I will Tell Papa I love him." I said. "Bye mom."

_"Bye Gabriella."_ She hung up.

I decided to give Troy a call._ "Hello?"_ I think I woke him up.

"TROY!" I said loudly.

He groaned. _"I'm tired"_

I giggled. "I'm sorry baby. Late night?"

_"Just missing you."_ He chuckled. _"What are you up today?"_

"Hanging out with Ruby until I have to leave for graduation." I sighed. "Dad's always working."

_"Who's Ruby?"_ He asked me. Shit I never told him about Ruby?

"My dads housekeeper." I said slowly.

He chuckled. _"Oh that's cool, at least you have someone to keep you company."_

We talked for a little while longer then I headed off to the graduation ceremony. I missed him alot but hanging out with my old friends makes me feel a little better.


	13. Seduction

**Troy's POV**

This weekend without Gabi was extremely long. I tried to go fishing but it wasn't the same without Gabi next to me. I stayed in my room most of the weekend. My parents were both working so they didn't really notice. Chad tired to get me out of my room but I didn't feel up to it. But today was finally Sunday and I was picking up Gabi from the airport. We were graduating by the end of the week.

Gabi's flight was coming at 9 tonight and I was picking her up at the airport. I missed her a lot even though she was barely gone for a day and a half. Before it was time to go I stopped at a flower shop and got her some nice flowers. I drove down to the airport and waited for her. I saw her plane just landed. It was running behind. I stood up and held the flowers behind my back. She should be one of the first ones out here.

I looked down at my vans and pulled my jeans down with my shoes. I looked up and saw Gabi smiling at me as she walked past security. I smiled at her and she walked over to me. "For you, My love." I handed her the small bouquet of flowers.

Gabi smiled up at me. "You are too sweet."

I wrapped my arms around her waist and kissed her lips slowly. "I missed you baby."

"I missed you too." She ran her fingers through my hair.

Somebody cleared their throat from beside us. "Gabriella." I closed my eyes, I knew who it was.

She pulled away from me, taking a hold of my hand. "Mom? What are you doing here?"

"Picking my daughter up from the airport but I see that was taken care of without my knowledge." Ms. Dutch said, shooting me an icy glare.

"I told you yesterday that Troy was picking me up but you weren't listening to me." Gabi said looking at her mother. She turned to me. "Hold this babe, I'll be right back." She handed me the bouquet and walked away with her mother.

I sighed and looked at the flowers I got her. I ran my fingers along the petals. They walked back over to me. "I'll just let you go with your mom. No big deal." I kissed her cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow." I handed the flowers back to her and walked away.

"Troy…" Gabi called after me. I turned back to her and waved. I kept walked until I got to my truck. Ironically Gabi's mom's car was parked right next to my truck. I rolled my eyes in thought.

I drove home and went in my room. I laid down and sighed. Oh well. I would get to see her tomorrow. I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket. I pulled it out and looked at it. Gabi.

_"I'm sorry. Thank you for the flowers. They're beautiful. Miss you. :[ "_

"You're welcome. I miss you too." I replied back to her.

My phone rang and I looked at it. "Hello?" I answered.

_"Stop being grumpy."_ Gabi said quietly.

"I'm not grumpy." I countered. I looked up at my plain white ceiling.

_"Yes, You are. I'm sorry my mom's a bitch. I wanted to go with you."_

"It's alright Gabriella. Don't worry about it." I said and she sighed.

_"Can you come over, please?"_ She begged.

I sighed. "Your mother would have a fit. She doesn't want me there."

_"But I do. Please?"_ She said quietly.

I ran my fingers through my hair. "I'm on my way."

_"See you soon."_ She said quietly before hanging up.

I grabbed my keys and walked out of the door unnoticed. I drove around the back of her house. It was just a creek back there. I parked and found her gate. I brushed the spider webs off the fence and opened it quietly. I closed the gate and climbed up the tree in her backyard up to her balcony. I brushed myself off and fixed my hair. I knocked on her French doors.

I saw her peak through her curtains. She opened the door and smiled. "How the hell did you get back here without opening the front gate?"

I chuckled. "All these houses are the same. There is a back gate that leads to the creek behind your house. I pointed to the corner. That big bush is hiding it."

She giggled quietly. "That's why you have leaves in your hair?"

"Do not." She reached up and pulled a leaf out of my hair and handed it to me. "I guess I missed one."

She grabbed my hand and pulled me inside. She closed the doors behind me. "Mom should be asleep by now, I want to cuddle."

"Your wish is my command." I laid down on her bed and she crawled up next to me. I gave her a quick peck on the lips.

She smiled. "So your not mad at me anymore?"

I smiled at her. "I wasn't mad, just upset I couldn't spend time with you. I'm all better now." I ran my fingers through her hair slowly. "How was the graduation?"

"Fun, I missed my friends, especially Bree. She's coming on Friday, so is dad." She sighed and rested her head on my chest. "You are going to have to share me."

I pouted. "I don't like sharing."

"I'm sorry baby." She scooted closer to me and kissed my lips slowly. "I missed your kisses." She mumbled against my lips.

"I missed yours too." I wrapped my arms around her tightly.

She giggled quietly against my chest. "Bree said you have a lovely singing voice."

My cheeks burned. "I knew you had me on speakerphone."

She kissed my lips again. "You are so cute I couldn't resist." Gabi rested her face in my neck.

I played with her curls and sighed in content. "Sing to me." I whispered.

She pulled away from me and sat up. "You are going to be proud of me. I found the country station and every time I was in a car I turned it to the country station and I found new songs to sing to you other than Taylor swift."

I chuckled. "Well you have sang at least three songs from each album."

"Ready?" She asked me and I nodded.

'Yeah, we both got dreams  
We could chase alone  
Or we could make our own  
The whole world could change in a minute  
Just one kiss could stop it spinning  
We could think it through  
But I don't want to, if you don't want to.  
We could keep things just the same  
Leave here the way we came  
With nothing to lose  
But I don't want to,  
if you don't want to  
Never waste another day wondering what you threw away  
Holding me, holding you  
But I don't want to,  
if you don't want to"

She leaned over and kissed my lips slowly.

"We could keep things just the same.  
Leave here the way we came  
With nothing to lose.  
I don't want to  
If you don't want to.  
But I want to.  
But I want you."

I smiled at her and kissed her lips gently. I ran my fingers down her cheeks slowly. "Gabi?"

She kissed my lips slowly. "Yeah baby?"

Her eyes flicked up at me. My mouth spread to a smile. "I love you." I spoke quietly to her.

She looked at me for a second then broke out into a smile. "I love you too Troy."

I pulled her onto my lap where she sat gladly. I wrapped my arms around her waist and kissed her lips firmly. She giggled quietly against my lips. I pulled away from her lips. "How are you not tired?"

She bit her lip. "Daddy bought me Starbucks before we left… Four shot Venti White Chocolate Mocha with whole milk and whip cream." I just stared at her. I didn't speak coffee language.

I blinked at her. "Gabriella Montez."

She pouted. "I know. It sucks He knows better but he thought it would be funny… Asshole. Now I can't sleep. Kiss me."

I laughed and crawled under her covers and hid my face. "Troy tired."

"Troy." She whined quietly.

"No." I smiled to myself, I was just messing with her.

She was moving around on the bed but remaining quiet. She crawled under the blanket and climbed on top of me. She grabbed my hands and put them on her bare thighs. She leaned down and touched my nose against hers. "Will you kiss me now?"

I pulled her against me and kissed her lips firmly. She pushed her tongue into my mouth. I moved my hands up her waist. She grabbed my hair and kept her lips firmly placed against mine. I pulled away from her lips and bit her neck gently. She moaned quietly. She sat up and threw the blankets off us. She grabbed my shirt and pulled me up connecting my lips to hers.

I laid back down and smirked at her. "Cute bra."

She raised her eyebrows and reached behind her and took her bra off slowly. She dropped it on my face. "It looks cuter on you."

I moved the bra to the ground and stared at her boobs. I looked at my half naked girlfriend, sitting on my lap. I felt the blood rush to in between my legs. I moved my hands to her chest. She bit her lip as she watched me touch her. I let go and my finger tips trailed down her stomach slowly. She lifted my shirt off and placed it next to us. "You are beautiful baby." I pulled her against my and kissed her lips slowly. "I love you so much." I whispered against her lips.

"I love you too Troy." She smiled at me. She picked up my shirt against and put it on. She laid against me. "Tell me what you love about me." She rested her chin against my chest.

I looked at her and chuckled a bit. "There's not enough time in the world to tell you everything."

She rolled her eyes at me. "Narrow it down then, huh?" She wiggled next to me, getting comfortable. "Top five."

I wrapped my arm around her placing my fingers on her waist. "I love listening to you talk. I could listen to you talk all day. You have the voice of an angel. I love that you haven't experienced the little things and I get to teach you. Like skipping a rock or going on the Ferris Wheel the first time. I love the way your laugh goes silent when you can't stop laughing. Your laugh is contagious. I love the way you smile at me every time we see each other. Whether its at school or like when I picked you up from the airport." She giggled quietly and watched me talk.

"One more." She rubbed my chest slowly.

"I love your boobs." I said with a smirk. "I like the way they jiggle when you walk quickly. They are the perfect size to fit in the palms of my hands."

Gabi's cheeks flushed and she buried her head in my chest. "Really my boobs?"

I chuckled. "Yep." I kissed the top of her head. "What do you love most about me?"

She lifted her head up and smiled at me. She bit her bottom lip in thought. "I love that you love me for me not because I have money. I love that you always listen to me talk, even if it's about stupid stuff like high school drama. I love the way you sing to me every night before we go to bed, you opened me up to a whole new genre of music. I love your boat and old truck. Spending time with you in those are my favorite places in Albuquerque." She kissed my chest then smirked at me. "I love your abs. They are very sexy. I just want to eat food off of them."

I laughed and wrapped my arms around her tightly. "You are too perfect." I kissed her lips. "Are you tired yet?"

She giggled and shrugged. "A little bit."

"I should head back home." I kissed her nose.

She pouted at me. "Stay here babe." She rolled on top of me and kissed my abs slowly. "I'll let you play with my boobs." She smirked.

I chuckled quietly and shook my head. "You don't have to bribe me baby." I pulled her against me and kissed her cheeks. "you are so beautiful."

Her cheeks warmed against my lips. "oh stop." She grinned and kissed my lips slowly. "you're beautiful."

I shook my head. "You look very sexy in my shirt."

"You look very sexy with no shirt." She winked at me. She looked down at me. "Those pants look very uncomfortable. " She giggled quietly and unzipped my pants and pulled them off my legs. She smacked my thighs gently and sat in between my legs. "Much better."

"Come here" I waved her over.

She stood on her knees and leaned over to me. She placed her lips against mine and whispered. "You already had me naked, now it's your turn." I froze as her lips trailed down my neck. Her fingers slipped under the waistband of my boxers and pulled them down slowly. She looked up at me. "Have you ever had sex?"

I blinked at her. "I had 2 drunken hook ups. What about you?"

She sighed. "I slept with my second boyfriend when I was 16." She said quietly. "He talked me into smoking weed and having sex… Sorry I ruined the moment." She laid down on with her chin on my stomach.

"It's alright baby. When I was 12, Jason pantsed me in gym class. Half of my class saw my dick." I admitted.

She giggled quietly. "God middle school was the worst. I got my boobs before everybody else so all the guys were obsessed with me." She rolled her eyes. "Then this girl named Audrey had like a D cup at 14 and all the attention turned to her."

"Which do you like better, San Francisco or LA?" I looked down at her.

"LA, I love the Bay Area but San Franciscans are asshole hipsters." I raised an eyebrows. "Really. You'll always be hated for something."

I chuckled. "That is just high school in general."

She thought about it then nodded her head in agreement. "I love how your naked in my bed and we're talking about California."

I laughed and shook my head. "You started it by taking off my pants then asking me about sex." I looked over at the clock. It was almost 2 in the morning and I was surprisingly awake. Damn Gabi.

She smirked at me. "Do you want to sleep or do you want something else?" She lifted her chest off my stomach.

"I don-" I started to reply but I couldn't help but get distracted when she took off my shirt she was wearing. I gulped as she wrapped her hand around my erection. She leaned down and ran her tongue across the tip of my dick. I immediately shut my eyes. She placed her other hand around my balls, playing with them carefully. I was so turned on. Her warm wet mouth collapsed around my shaft. Her hands pumped up and down my penis slowly as her head bobbed up and down. "Fuck babe." I muttered. I heard her giggle quietly. She hummed and her lips rumbled against the head of my dick.

"You like that?" She asked seductively. All I could do was nod quickly. She squeezed me in between her hands. I moaned quietly. She stroked my dick quickly then put me back in her mouth. Her tongue circled the head of me slowly. She placed soft kisses down my shaft before running her tongue all the way up.

"Shit babe, I'm close." I could feel the pressure build up inside of me. She pulled away again, her hands stroked and twisted around me. Gabi's tongue flicked the head of my penis, taking me in her mouth. "I'm coming." I groaned and released my seed in her mouth. I looked down at her as she swallowed and placed a kiss on the tip of my head. "You are going to be the death of me." I said as I laid back against her pillow breathing heavily.

She giggled quietly and smirked up at me. "Damn babe."

I looked over at her. "What?"

"How are you still hard?" She looked down then looked up at my face.

"I'm so turned on right now." I said, still catching my breath. "I want you so bad."

Her smiled turned into a smirk. Gabi moved up and attached her lips to my earlobe. She took my hand and slid it in her panties. I brushed my fingers against her and she moaned quietly against my ear. "Look how wet you make me." I couldn't take it anymore. I rolled on top of her and slid down her panties. I pushed a finger into her cavity and kissed her lips. I moved my thumb in circles against her clitoris slowly. She let out a moan. "Fuck Troy." She cursed as she moved her hips against my hand. I pushed another finger in her and moved them in and out quickly.

I pressed my lips against hers and she pushed her tongue in my mouth. Our tongues danced together in her mouth. Her hard nipples grazed my chest. I curled my fingers up and stoked her walls. "Come for me baby." I mumbled against her lips.

I left her legs shake from underneath me. "Faster!" She demanded before she moaned out my name with a curse. I moved my fingers inside of her faster. I felt her walls clench against my fingers. "Oh Troy. I'm gonna-" She arched her back and moaned loudly. I felt her release on my fingers and her body spasmed in delight. She rode it out and I removed my fingers from her.

I rolled off her and kissed her lips firmly. "I think that's enough for tonight." I whispered. She mumbled something before tangling her legs in between mine. We laid there for a minute as Gabi's breath evened out. I looked down at her and her eyes were closed. I kissed her forehead gently and closed my eyes as well. "I love you Gabi." I whispered quietly against her forehead.

* * *

**Dont forget to Review :)**


	14. Graduation

**Troy's POV**

I heard an alarm clock going off and I shot up. I looked around and saw Gabi sleeping next to me. "Fuck. Shit. Fuck." I muttered as I found my boxers and pulled them on. I found my shirt and my pants. I leaned over and shook Gabi. "Gabi wake up."

"Gabriella!" I heard her mom walking up the stairs.

"Shit!" I whispered and ran into her closet and closed the door.

"Gabriella." The door opened. "Gabriella Katherine Montez. Wake up, you are going to be late."

Gabi shot up, holding her blanket against her. She looked around confused then looked at her mom. She blinked in realization that she was naked. She laid back down. "Sorry, I couldn't… sleep last night." She gulped. "I'll be downstairs in a minute."

"Alright, Don't fall back asleep or I'll come up here." Her mother said as she walked out of the room. She shut the door behind her. We both waited until she walked down the steps.

"Holy fucking shit." Gabi muttered, wiping her hand over her forehead.

I opened the closet and Gabi jumped and looked at me. Realizing who I was her look softened and she smiled at me. "That was close."

I sat on her bed. "You have bags under your eyes." She said quietly. Her alarm went off again and she smacked it to shut it off. She sighed. "I'm tired."

I smiled at her. "Me too." I leaned over and kissed her lips gently.

"Why are you clothed? You aren't going to shower with me?" She whispered.

I smirked at her. "I didn't know I was going to have you for breakfast." She got up and started walking towards her bathroom. I followed her inside. After a heated but short make-out session in the shower I got dressed again quickly. I ran down to my truck and found another shirt and put it on. I sprayed myself with cologne and drove to the front of Gabi's house. I punched in the numbers and honked the horn.

Gabi came out in a short sundress. She looked as beautiful as ever. She ran over and climbed in the truck. "Long time no see." She smirked. "You're early."

"I thought we could get something for breakfast. I'm starving." I smirked at her.

"You shouldn't be after the breakfast you had this morning." She smirked back at me and kissed my lips again. "Let's go. We should get Starbucks."

"That's what you need Gab, Coffee." I said with a chuckle. She rolled her eyes at me and leaned against me. I kissed her lips and smiled. "I love you."

She smiled at me. "I love you too baby."

* * *

I drove up to school with a pit stop at starbucks. We got out early all week because it was technically finals week. Us seniors had senior week. Which means we get dick around for at least 4 hours and bounce at noon. They had senior 'activities' which meant our class had left over money and we needed to spend it on something. Today, the faculty got bounce houses for a bunch of high school seniors. This was a terrible idea.

"This is bullshit." Taylor said walking to into the gym next to Gabi. "We had all this money, we couldn't go on a nice trip.. No! We have to get fucking inflatable bounce houses."

"Looks like the boys are having fun." She pointed to Zeke, Jason, Chad and a couple other guys pushing each other around in a bounce house.

Taylor snorted. "That's because they think that they're 10 still." Chad rolled out of the bounce house. "Seriously?" Taylor muttered angrily walking over to him.

I wrapped my arms around Gabi. "What do you want to do?" I whispered against her ear. She rubbed up and down my arms slowly.

She shrugged. "I want to go to sleep." She rested her head against my chest. She yawned. "I'm so tired."

"Let's go find somewhere to sit." I pressed my lips against the top of her head. This is the most calm I've seen Gabs ever. She normally was bouncing off the walls. We went to the far side of the gym where it was much calmer. We sat in the bleachers and she laid her head in my lap. I played with her hair and watched my class run around.

"Troy!" I heard from across the room.

I looked up and saw Chad waving me over. I shook my head and pointed to Gabi who passed out of my lap 10 minutes ago. I could see Chad roll his eyes from across the gym. He walked over to Taylor. I saw Ryan and Sharpay come over towards me and Gabi.

"Sup Troy." Ryan said. I shook his hand. "Why aren't you joining the festivities?"

"Hey guys." I leaned back on my elbows. "Gabi got in late from California and didn't sleep last night." I looked down and bushed my fingers through her curls. "She's tired."

Ryan's lips pulled to a smile. Sharpay's however was stone cold. "You really like her don't you?" Ryan remarked.

I nodded. "I do. She's amazing." I looked over at them. "Did you guys decided on where your going?"

Sharpay's face lit up. "I'm going to NYU. I'm going to audition for a couple Broadway shows." Her smile was genuine. She really loved performing. "I'm really excited."

I smiled at her. "That's great Shar. When you make it, let me know. Don't forget about the little people."

She laughed quietly. "Ryan here got into Julliard." She raised her eyebrows.

Ryan rolled his eyes. "I did. When I get famous I won't forget you either." He joked. "What about you Troy? What are your plans?"

"Well I'm going to play ball for ACC then I don't know from there. Gabs is going back to California. UCLA." I rubbed her back slowly.

"That's great for Gabs." Ryan said with a smile.

"Mr. and Ms. Evans." I saw Ms. Darbus, the eccentric drama teacher call them over. They waved to me and walked away.

"Gabi." I whispered down to her ear. "Baby, Wake up."

She groaned and put her face in her hands. "No." She whined.

I smiled and shook her a little bit. "Come on Gabs."

She sat up and looked over at me with tired eyes. "What Troy?"

"I love you." I said with bright smile and she groaned . She fell back into my lap. I lifted her up and sat her on my lap. I kissed her lips slowly. "You look beautiful when you wake up."

"Shut up, I look like shit." She put her head on my chest. "I'm going to sleep so good tonight."

I laughed. "Me too. I won't be kept up by you." She glared at me. I smiled at her and kissed her neck gently. "I love you baby."

She kept fighting a smile but the smile eventually won. "I love you too." She kissed my nose. "Let's go interact."

* * *

That week went by quickly. Before I knew it, I walked across the stage finally graduating from high school. After we threw our caps up I found mine then walked around looking for Gabi. I felt two arms wrap around me from behind. "Congrats handsome."

I turned around and brushed the hair out of her face. "Congrats beautiful." I leaned down and kissed her lips gently. "I love you."

She smiled at me. "I love you too." She put her hands in mine. "I have people for you to meet."

Gabi and I have only seen each other at school and earlier today. Her dad came early and she was spending time with him. "Alright." She lead me through the group of people who rushed down on the football field. I looked around, trying to find my parents but there was just too many people. We stopped and she let go of my hand. A little brunette girl came running over to us. I recognized her from the pictures around Gabi's room. "Bree!" She hugged the girl tightly. "Daddy!" A man in a business suit came walking over and she hugged him too.

"Hey baby." He kissed the top of her head. "Congratulations."

I scratched my nose as I watched them interact. I saw Bree looking at me. She smiled apologetically and nudged Gabi. "Aren't you forgetting someone?" Gabs looked over at me and smiled.

"Daddy, I'd like you to meet someone." He looked down at his daughter. "Dad, this is my boyfriend. Troy Bolton."

His eyes flicked over to me. "Hello Troy." He said as I walked over to him. I held out my hand and he shook it firmly. "I've heard a lot about you."

"I've heard a lot about you too." I released his hand. "It's nice to meet you Mr. Montez."

"I'm Bree." Bree said to me. "I don't get a formal introduction. I'm just the BFF" She said rolling her eyes.

"Hi Bree." I said with a chuckle. "Gab I'm going to go find my parents."

"No need." A voice said from behind me. "We're right here." I looked back and saw my mom and dad. Mom smiled at me and Gabriella. "Gabi! Congrats sweetheart." Mom loves Gabi.

"Thanks Lucy." Gabi said with a smile. "Lucy, I want you to meet my dad John Montez." She looked up at her father. "Dad this is Mr. and Mrs. Bolton."

They greeted each other and started talking. I looked over at Gabi. "Where's your mom?"

"She had to go to the bathroom." Bree said. "She's probably lost. Shit. I would be."

Gabi giggled. "Oh there she is."

"Gabriella!" I heard her mom screech. She threw her arms around her daughter. "I'm so proud of you sweetheart." She pulled away and looked at me. "Congratulations Troy." She said shortly then turning back to Gabi.

Bree stood next to me. "Damn, she really doesn't like you." She looked at me then back at her friend.

"I really don't know what I did." I said shrugging.

"Katherine, Have you met Mr. and Mrs. Bolton?" I looked up to see Gabi's dad walk over to Gabi's mom with my parents.

"Katherine Dutch?" My dad said, looking very confused. "You're Gabi's Mom?"

Gabi's mom pulled away from Gabi and walked over to the adults. "Hello Jack, Lucille." Her mom said with a smirk. "Haven't seen you since I moved."

I looked at Gabi and she looked up at me. "This can't be good." I muttered under my breath. Gabi nodded.

"How have you been Kat?" Mom asked with a smile.

Ms. Dutch smiled back. "I've been great, Taking care of my father and my little girl."

"Oh Gabriella is such a sweetheart. Her and Troy are very good together." Mom said looking over at us.

Gabi's mom didn't say anything. "Right. Well Gabriella, we have to go visit grandpa before your party this afternoon." I looked over at Gabi. "Let's go, Bree, Gabriella."

I watched her mom walk away. "I'm sorry about that." Mr. Montez said to my parents. "You are invited to the house later for Gabi's party."

"we'd love to come." Mom said smiling at Mr. Montez.

I looked over at Gabi. "I guess I'll see you later." She smiled at me and leaned up to kiss me. "I love you."

She pulled away from me. I kissed the back of her hands. "I love you too. I'll see you later." I gave her another kiss and she pulled away. "Bye handsome."

I winked at her and she giggled and wrapped her arms around Bree. "Bye Bree. Bye Gab."

"Bye Troy." Bree said waving to me.

I walked over to my parents and we walked out of the grass. "She's still a bitch." I heard my mom mutter from behind me. "Did you see the way she talked to Troy?"

"I know honey." My dad said. I walked in front of then and climbed into the car.

I don't understand why our moms disliked each other. I ran through all the possibilities in my head. It was probably just some high school bullshit. We went out to eat lunch as a family. I was happy both parents got off work for my graduation. We walked into a pizza place. I sat with mom as dad ordered the pizza.

"Mom?" I asked her. She looked over at me.

"Yeah Troy?" She asked.

"Who do you and Gabi's mom dislike each other?" I rested my chin on my knuckles.

She sighed. "We were best friends since kindergarten. Her parents were like my second parents. Freshman year I met your father and we hit it off right away. Kat always felt like a 3rd wheel but Jack thought of her as a best friend too. Jack told me that Kat told him that she had a small crush on him sophomore year. Jack told her he didn't feel the same and she started separating herself from us. Her parents got divorced and her mom moved out to California. She moved away at the end of sophomore year. We still talked but not as much as we did before. I found out I was pregnant and when I told her she just cut herself out of my life. I haven't talked to her since until today. I had more important problems." I raised my eyebrows.

"Well…" I said. I had no idea what to say. I was right though. Stupid high school drama. "Anyways."

Dad came over and sat down. We talked about college and such. It wasn't a heavy conversation. It was nice.

* * *

We got to Gabi's a little after five. I lead my parents through the gate and we walked up to the door. I rang the doorbell. Gabi opened the door. "Hey, Come in. Everybody is out back."

I walked in and Gabs grabbed me and pulled me close to her. "Hey beautiful." I kissed her forehead. "You look amazing." I looked her up and down. She had a blue short dress on. "I like your dress."

"Daddy made it special for me." She wrapped her arms around me. She pouted. "I'm on door duty."

I raised her eyebrows. "How many people are coming?"

She rolled her eyes. "Too many people I don't even know. The adults are supposed to leave by 8. Mom and Dad are going out for the rest of the night to 'talk' " She used air quotes and made a face.

I chuckled. "I'm sorry. I'll keep you company." I offered. I sat on the chair close to the door. She sat on my lap.

"You hungry?" She asked. "We have food outback."

I shook my head. "We went out to lunch after graduation. I'm still full." I kissed her cheek. "You hungry?"

"I'm good. But you'd you get me a water?" She got up.

"Of course." I got up and kissed her lips. "I love you."

"I love you too." She smiled at me.

I walked outside to the refreshment table. I got Gabi a water and ran into a drunk Bree on the way over. "Oops." She said after she bumped into me.

"You alright Bree?" I asked her.

'I'm fabulous!" She giggled and walked away. "Bye Troy"

I walked back to Gabi, she was hugging a boy and a pair of adults I assumed were his parents. I walked back to the chair I was sitting in and waited for her. I put the water on the table. The boy was talking to her and rubbing her arm. He leaned in and kissed her cheek and they walked towards the back. Gabi turned back to the chair and saw me watching her.

"Here's your water." I handed it to her as she got back on my lap.

"Thanks babe." she cuddled against me.

"Who was that?" I wrapped my arms around her waist.

She took a drink of her water then put it on the coaster on the table. "Technically, He is my ex-boyfriend. His name is Travis. His parents are really good friends of my parents. He's more of a friend though. He moved to New York freshman year." She explained. "So we broke up."

"I see." I looked over at the boy she was hugging. He was looking over at us. "You don't see him often?"

She shook her head. "This is the first time I've seen him since he left." She sighed. "I'm tired of door duty."

"Bree's Drunk." I said. "She ran into me when I was walking over here."

She sighed. "I told her not to drink too much. I'm going to kill that girl."

"Gabriella." We looked up and saw Gabi's mom walk over to us. "You can go socialize now. There are a lot of guests waiting to talk to you."

"Alright mom. I'll be right there." She said grabbing her water taking another drink.

"Now. Gabriella." She walked away.

I let out a whistle. "Is she always this angry?"

She nodded. "She's bitter." Gabi got off my lap and gave me a kiss. "I have to go socialize. Keep your phone on you so we can sneak away for a little bit."

I smiled at her. "Alright." I kissed her lips. "Love you."

"Love you too." She let go of my hand and walked away.

I made my way out back. I found Taylor and Chad and I walked over to them. "What's up?"

"Hey Troy." They said at the same time.

"Freaky." I said taking seat next to them. "Your parents here?" I asked them.

"Mine are over there." Chad pointed they were sitting next to my parents.

Taylor shook her head. "Mine aren't, they are being slaves to the rest of my family that came down." She sighed. "So glad I got out of the house."

I chuckled. "Gabs was on door duty, but now she's socializing."

"Her mom's been brutal all day." Taylor commented.

"Did she tell you about graduation?" I asked her. She shook her head. "My mom plus her mom is not a good combination."

"Who's that guy Gabi is hugging?" Chad asked. I looked over to where he was pointing.

I found Gabi with her arms around Travis. "Her ex boyfriend slash family friend."

"He is so trying to touch her butt." Chad commented.

"What?" I stood up.

Taylor grabbed my arm and pulled me down. "Troy. Don't be stupid. Chad. Shut the hell up." Taylor mediated.

"Wanna get away from all these people?" I asked them. They nodded. "Come on." I lead them along a little walkway into a bush. I opened the fence and held it open for them. I closed the gate and we sat down against the fence.

"How the hell did you find this?" Chad asked.

"I know Albuquerque like the back of my hand. All these houses have them. The people who own it usually have no idea because nobody goes back here." I said. I smiled. "I also snuck into Gabi's house one night."

Taylor started laughing. "Her mom didn't wake up?"

I shook my head. "Not until the next day. I hid in the closet for like 10 minutes."

Chad was cracking up next to me. "Only you Troy.. Only you."

* * *

**Sorry, this chapter was like on fast foreward. Oh well. Thank you for all the positive reviews! I appreciate it! Thank you for everything, really. Don't forget to review :)**


	15. Frustration

**Gabriella's POV**

All the adults left around 8 and now it was just a bunch of teenagers. Most of the people from East High were there. I honestly didn't know half of them. I haven't seen Troy since we parted when I got off of door duty. Chad and Taylor were out back for a little while but they seemed to disappear as well. Bree was passed out drunk in the bedroom next to mine. Travis helped me carry her up the stairs.

She was never much of a drinker. She just let loose today I guess. Travis was following me around like a lost fucking puppy. He would not leave me alone and it was getting on my nerves. I saw Michaela and a bunch of her friends. I don't know why the hell they were at my house but I introduced them to Travis and walked away quickly. I went upstairs to my room and called Troy.

_"Hello?"_ The music was thumping quietly in the background as he spoke.

"Where are you? I've been looking for you for like 3 hours now." I said, falling on my bed.

_"I'm out back with Taylor and Chad. We've been hiding out since like 6 o'clock. But we made a cameo when our parents left. Remember I told you about the gate? We're back there."_ Troy said.

I sighed. "Wanna sneak away? I'm in my room."

_"Be there in five."_ He said and hung up. I giggled quietly. I put my phone on the night stand. I sat up and heard a knock on my balcony doors. I got up and opened the door. Troy stood in front of me and smiled at me.

I pulled him inside and closed the doors. I walked over to my bedroom door and locked it. I walked over to Troy who sat on my bed and kissed his lips firmly. I pushed him down on the bed and climbed on top of him. He chuckled and put his hands on the back of my thighs. I pulled away from his lips. "I missed you."

"Missed you too." He mumbled as his lips traveled down my neck. "You look so sexy in your dress baby." He attached his lips to my neck and started sucking firmly.

I moaned quietly and ran my hands up his shirt. I dragged my fingernails down his abs. His breath hitched. He released my neck and I quickly attached my lips to his. I flicked my tongue against his bottom lip. He let me in and his hands traveled up my dress.

_Knock. Knock._ "Gabi you in there?" I closed my eyes. It was fucking Travis.

"Go away Travis." I yelled.

"Are you alright in there Gabi?" He tried coming in. Thank god I locked the door.

I pulled away from Troy. "I'm fine Travis. Go talk to people."

"But-" He started.

He was really getting on my nerves. "GO!" I yelled.

"Fine. Damn." I heard him say. Troy started getting up.

I pushed him back down. "Where do you think you're going?" I smirked at him and pulled his body against mine. I nipped at his bottom lip, sucking on it gently. I pulled away from his lips slowly.

"Baby." He whispered. I looked down at him and he smiled. "I love you."

I giggled. "I love you too." He flipped me over and laid on top of me. He put his leg in between mine and kissed my lips firmly. His hands traveled under my dress. His finger tips brushed my inner thighs causing me to tremble. I moaned quietly against his lips. "I want you so bad." I whispered.

He plunged his tongue in my mouth. He massaged his tongue along mine. He moved his hands along my lace underwear. "So sexy baby." His mumbled. I felt his erection poking my thigh. He slipped his hand in my panties. I shifted and lifting my free leg up as the other was pinned under his body.

_Knock, Knock._ "Gabi! Bree is throwing up. She wants you." I heard somebody call from behind the door. I groaned and Troy rolled off me. I could tell he was just as annoyed as I was. We got up and straightened ourselves out. There was a knock at the door again. "Gabi?"

"I'm coming. Hold the fuck on." I yelled. I rubbed my forehead.

Troy rubbed my back and kissed my cheek. "I'll go find Tay and Chad."

We walked out the door and saw Travis standing there. I turned to Troy. "I love you. I'll catch up with you after I'm going to take care of Bree."

"Alright beautiful. I love you too." He kissed my lips and the back of my hand before he walked away.

My cheeks still felt flushed. I walked over to the guest room, into the bathroom where Bree's face was in the toilet. She didn't throw up everywhere which was a blessing. "Hey honey. How are you feeling?" I kneeled next to her. I found a hair tie in a drawer and put her hair up into a bun.

She was crying. She sat back. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to."

I flushed the toilet for her and cleaned her up a little bit. "It's alright Bree. You drank a little too much." I helped her up. "Did you get it all out?"

She nodded. "I feel better." She hiccupped. "I'm so sorry."

"Come on. Let's get you changed into something more comfortable." I walked her into my room where Travis was looking at a picture of Troy and I. "Travis." I sighed.

He turned to me and put the picture down, knocking stuff over in the process. "Sorry. I-" He tried to pick it up.

I closed my eyes. "It's fine. Just leave it there. I'll pick it up." Bree sat on my bed. "I'm going to help Bree change so I'm going to ask you to leave."

"Of course." He said making his way out the door. "O-of course." He stuttered.

I rolled my eyes and closed the door behind him. "He's getting on my fucking nerves B" I walked over to the things he knocked over and put them back to the way they were. I put the picture of Troy and I front and center.

"Your room smells like sex." She said, giggling quietly. "Did you and Troy have a quickie?"

"No." I said, with a smile. I helped her take her dress off. I found some seats and a t-shirt and handed them to her. "We were just making out, fucking Travis knocked on my door twice."

"Whattabitch" She slurred, combining the words into one long word. "I'm tired."

"Did you eat something?" I asked her. She nodded. I helped her up and walked her back to the guest room. I laid her down and tucked her in. I put her cell next to her. "Call me if you need me."

"Thanks G. I love you." She mumbled.

"Love you too hun." I said quietly as I closed the door behind me. I turned around to see Travis in front of me. I jumped. "Shit Travis."

He chuckled. "Sorry Gabi." He smiled and looked at me with his brown eyes. He looked different from four years ago. He was older, more annoying.

"it's fine. I think I'm going to kick everybody out. So you better call your parents." I said walking past him. He grabbed my arm.

"Gabs wait." He said. I just looked at him. "I missed you, I really did. When I had to move it broke my heart. I always thought we were going to get back together. I'm still in love with you."

I raised my eyebrows. "A. We were what? 14? when we dated so I highly doubt that you were in love with me and B You haven't even talked to me in 4 years. I'm a completely different person than I was back then and C. I told you when you walked in the door I had a boyfriend so don't pull this bullshit alright?" I crossed my arms on my chest.

"Gabi-" He started.

"Call your parents." I said walking away from him. I walked down stairs and walked over to the DJ. I whispered. "Last song then everyone is out of my house." He nodded and finished the song he was playing.

"Alright guys, call your parents cause this is the last song for the night. Then you have to get the hell out of here." The DJ said. I smiled at him.

I walked to the door and opened it. People slowly started grabbing their things and walking out. I made my rounds through the down stairs and kicked people out. I walked upstairs and opened all the room to make sure everybody was out. I walked to the back yard and made sure it was clear. I let Troy Chad and Taylor stay cause they were helping me. We got everybody out and I walked to the door and found Travis waiting for me.

"Gabi, just let me talk okay?" He pleaded.

"Fine. You have one minute." I said.

"I did love you Gabi. I still do. What we had was special and you know that. We were meant to be. Your mom loves me. She doesn't even like him. We're perfect for each other." He started walking closer to me. "Let me just prove to you how much I love you." He leaned in.

I put my palm on his forehead and held him an arms length away from me. I heard Chad snicker from behind me. "Look Travis. You are annoying the fuck out of me and you need to get the hell out of my house." I grabbed his ear and put him on the curb in front of my house. I walked back through the gate and closed it, setting the code.

I walked back inside. I let out a deep breath and looked at my messy house. I was so glad I didn't have to clean it. I walked over to Troy, Chad and Taylor. "Hey" Taylor said, smiling at me.

"You guys can stay if you want we have more than enough room." I offered. "I am exhausted. We don't need to clean. The cleaning ladies are coming in the morning." I yawned.

"Alright, we can stay." Chad said looking at Taylor who nodded.

"Let me show you a room." I walked over to Troy and held his hand and we walked up the stairs. Taylor and Chad were in tow. I opened another guest bedroom and showed them the inside. "Will this do?"

Taylor laughed. "This is fine Gabi."

"Goodnight guys." I said, walking out. I pulled Troy along with me.

He wrapped his arms around me and walked with me into my room. He closed the door behind him and let go of me. I reached behind my back and pulled down the zipper of my dress. I stepped out of it and walked towards my closet. "Damn babe." I heard Troy mutter from behind me.

I hung up the dress and closed my closet. I turned to face Troy who was left in his boxers. "Damn babe." I mimicked him, biting my bottom lip. He started walking over to me and I grabbed him by his boxers and pulled him against me. "Now, we won't get interrupted."

He leaned down and placed his lips on mine. "Interrupted during what?" He asked me. I felt my cheeks flush. "Tell me."

I pulled away from his lips and walked over to my bed. I laid down and got under the covers. "Sleep." I smirked and rolled over so my back was to him. Troy crawled into my bed and wrapped his arms around me. I felt his lips move down the back of my neck.

He scooted down slowly, leaving kissed down my spine. I arched my back and turned to face him. He kissed right above my hipbone, biting gently. He wrapped his arms around my hips and grabbed my butt firmly. I giggled. I rolled to my back. He got up and laid next to me. I looked at him confused. "I know why our moms dislike each other." He said.

"Why?" I simply asked, hugging my arms around him.

"Apparently when they were in high school your mom was the third wheel. She had a crush on my dad and she told him. Her mom and dad got a divorce and she moved out to California with her mom. My mom got pregnant and told her and they stopped talking." He said. I just looked at him. "That's what mom told me at least."

"That's so stupid. That's probably why because she always does shit like this. She holds grudges like a bitch. It's so irritating." I groaned. "At my homecoming dance she went up to this girl and called her a bitch then walked away. She's fucking crazy Troy!" I laid my head on his chest. "She irritates me."

He ran his fingers though my hair. "I'm sorry baby."

I looked at him. "It's alight." I sighed. "You don't sing to me anymore." I pouted.

"We Hadn't had time to talk in a while." He kissed my forehead. "But I will sing to you." He yawned and pulled my closer to him. He started clearing his throat. I giggled.

"If I doubted the power of love, Baby now I understand  
I thank god for every day I wake up to the soft touch  
Of your magic hands  
In this world sometimes the only thing that's real,  
Is the way you make me feel.  
Babe, the change is day and night  
I swear it's like  
No one ever left me out in the rain  
Cold words still remain unspoken.  
I never got lost, spent years in the dark  
You're here, now my heart's unbroken  
When I see your smile, feel my soul again  
Now I'm unbroken."

I cuddled up to him as I listen to him sing. His voice always swooned me. I kissed his lips after he finished. "You are the sweetest."

He chuckled. "Tell me something about you that I don't know."

I thought for a minute. "Sophomore year Asher thought I was a lesbian."

He started cracking up. "What? Why?"

"I have no idea. We hung out all the time. I hated when people touched my phone, like I'd go crazy. It was just a teenager thing ya know? But she would always try to steal my phone then one day. Asher, Bree and I went to the park and she wanted to confront me about it. But she got all freaked out and walked away then Bree told me and we tried to go find her but she like walked all the way to her house and I ripped her a new one." I let out a breath. "She makes me so frustrated."

"Why are you friends with her?" He asked me.

I didn't know the answer to that question. "You know, I don't know." I said pushing my hair back. I looked up at the ceiling. "I never really thought about it." I giggled.

"Women." He said, shaking his head.

"Right?" I agreed. "They are ridiculous." I was quiet for a moment. "Tell me something I don't know about you." I turned my attention to him.

He was quiet. "I hate going to hospitals."

"How come?" I asked quietly.

"Emma was sick before she died. We spent 3 whole days in the hospital. I hated every minute of it." He kept his eyes at the ceiling. "Every time I go in one I have panic attacks."

"I'm glad I know that" I leaned over and kissed his lips gently. I yawned and cuddled up to him. We eventually fell asleep. We weren't even paying attention to the time. We just talked and talked. I love that we could just talk and never run out of things to talk about.

"Gabriella… Gabriella Wake up." I heard a harsh whisper and somebody shook me. "Gabriella"

I groaned. "Go away." I turned over. An arm was draped around my waist.

"Gabriella Katherine Montez. You need to get up now and we need to talk." I sighed. It was mom.

I opened my eyes and sat up. "What Mom?" I looked over at the time it was 8 in the morning.

"I come in and the house is a mess and there is a boy in your bed." She said loudly. "What would your father think if he caught you like this Gabriella? I'm trusting you are not doing anything with this boy. I trust that if you are you are using the appropriate protection."

I put my head in my hands. "Mom we are not having sex. If we did we would use condoms. Dad isn't even home enough to notice if I was in my bed or not. You're being rude to him because of some high school grudge against his parents. Jesus mom. Get over yourself."

"You do not talk to your mother like that Gabriella. I'm sick and tired of your attitude. I've been very lenient with you since we got here. I am going to take more drastic measures if you don't grow up Gabriella. He is not allowed in your bed with you half naked. Do you understand?" I blinked at her. "Do you?"

"Yes mother." I said finally. "Can you leave so I can wake him up?" She stomped out the door and slammed it. Troy got up and got dressed. "Troy." I said sighing.

"I don't want you to get into trouble." He said quietly, while he buckled his belt.

I wrapped my arms around him tightly. "I'm so sorry about her." I said quietly. "I love you."

"I love you too." He kissed the top of my head. "I should get going."

I pouted. "I want you to stay."

"I want to stay with you too but I don't want to piss your mom off even more. She already hates me Gab." I kissed his chest. "This is all too familiar."

I dropped my arms from around him. I walked away from him and got dressed. I can't believe he would compare me to her. "You should go." I said quietly, walking out the bedroom door.

"Gabi." he called after me.

I walked over to where Chad and Taylor were and knocked on the door. "Guys, my moms back you gotta go."

"Alright" They called together.

After a while they came out of the bedroom. I walked the three of them out to Chad's car. I gave them each hugs. "Bye Gab." Taylor called as she got in the car.

Troy stood in front of me. I just looked at him. "I'll talk to you later I guess." He said, taking a step backwards.

"I am not like her and you know it. I don't give a shit what my mom says. She is a bitter bitch and I fucking Love you Troy. I can't believe you would even say something like that. If you think I'm like her don't even bother talking to me." I let out a frustrated breath. "Bye Troy."

I walked away even as Troy called after me. I closed the gate behind me and walked upstairs. I walked into the guest room next to mine to check on Bree. I closed the door and climbed in bed with her.

She groaned. "Gab, what the hell."

"Shut up. Go back to sleep." I got under the covers with her and fell back asleep.

* * *

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	16. Fusion

**Gabriella's POV**

It's been a day since our fight. I hadn't talked to Troy either. I missed him already. Dad and Bree were flying home today. I didn't spend much time with dad but I'm glad he came to my graduation. I was so happy Bree got to come too. I missed her but I'll get to see her in August. Mom and I drove them to the airport. We hung out for a little but they had to leave. We said our goodbyes. Mom and I walked back to the car.

"So what should we do today?" Mom asked. She was acting annoyingly chipper today. She decided to take my BMW out for a spin. She felt as if it needed to be broken in, which meant she drove it around because she was tired of her Range Rover.

"I don't feel like doing anything." I said quietly. We started driving out of the airport parking lot.

She glanced at me as she was driving. "What the matter honey?"

"Nothing, mom." I said, trying to keep my cool but she just irritated me.

"Come on. You can tell me baby." She said, rubbing my knee.

I sighed. "I don't want to talk about it with you mom."

She scoffed. "And why not?"

"Because I don't mom, alright?" I said, looking out the window.

"Baby, come on." She said looking at me.

"Troy and I got into a fight because you had to come yell at me in the morning. He is already upset that you hate him for no reason. He's had history of parents hating him for no reason and he does not deserve it. He is a great guy. He treats me with respect and reminds me of the little things in life mom." I looked at her. We pulled up to the house. "I've done a lot of things but I haven't gone fishing or been in a row boat or skip a rock since this year. I'm so glad I moved here with you mom. I really am. It reminds me that not everything is about money and designer clothes and going to parties with famous people. I'm a normal teenager and I love it."

She parked in the garage and looked at me. "I just want what's best for you Gabriella. I want you to find someone to take care of you baby. I don't think he can."

"I've been taking care of myself since I was 15 years old. Since daddy hit it big and since grandpa has gotten sick. If you can't see he is the best thing for me then you don't know me at all." I got out of the car and walked in the house.

I walked into my room and got changed into some running clothes. I put my shoes on and ran out the door. I ran down my street. I let the sound of Troy's play list ring in my ears. I set my pace and ran towards East High. It was about 2 miles away from my house. After a while I passed East High and ran straight to the house with the only person I wanted to be with. I slowed down as I turned down his street. I walked up his drive way and to his door. I knocked on the door, catching my breath.

"Gabi, What are you doing here sweetheart?" Mrs. Bolton answered the door.

My calves burned from under me. "Is Troy… home?" I asked in between breaths.

"Did you run here?" She asked with a chuckle. I nodded breathlessly. "He is in his room. I'll get you some water."

"Thank you… Mrs. Bolton." I gasped for more air and walked in the house. "Hi Mr. Bolton." I said as I walked past him towards Troy's room.

"Hi Gabi." He said, glancing from the TV.

I knocked on Troy's door. "I don't want to talk about it mom." I smiled a little, just hearing his voice made me feel better. I turned the knob and saw him face down on the bed. "Mom, I said I don't want to talk about it."

"It's not your mom." I told him and walked over to his bed. I sat down next to him and put a hand on his calf. "I came to apologize."

Troy turned around to look at me. "For what?" He asked. He looked like he hadn't slept in two days.

"Going all crazy girlfriend on you." I looked at him. "I'm sorry for yelling."

"Gabi, honey. Here's your water." Mrs. Bolton handed me a glass.

I smiled at her. "Thank you Mrs. Bolton."

"Lucy, remember?" She said sternly before giving us a smile. She closed the door behind her as she walked out.

I took a long drink before setting it down on his bedside table. "I ran all the way here." I explained to him. "I wanted to say I'm sorry and I love you." I put my hand on top of his, playing with his fingers. His head was rested against a pillow.

"I don't think you're like her. I was just giving you some time. I missed you like crazy." He said quietly. "I haven't slept since graduation." He gave me a weak smile.

I scooted closer to him and he rested his head on my stomach. "I'm so sorry baby. You need some sleep." I ran my fingers through his hair. It usually did the trick to make him fall asleep. I started humming quietly a Jason Aldean song that last played before I got to his door.

"I love you Gabi." He kissed my stomach over my shirt and closed his eyes.

"I love you too handsome." I took another drink of water. I massaged his scalp slowly. I started humming again and he hummed quietly along with me. I shushed him and rubbed his back. Troy fell asleep against my stomach and my phone vibrated. "Hello?" I answered quietly.

_"Gabriella where are you? I've been looking for you everywhere."_ Mom said. Her voice told me she was annoyed but that was pretty much her normal voice.

"I went for a run." I replied.

She sighed. _"When are you coming home?"_

"I don't know mom. It's summer. I don't have to be home." I yawned. "Mom you should go out. Go Visit Papa Rocks, Go on a date, Something." I smirked to myself, I just imagine her rolling her eyes at me.

_"We'll see Gabriella. You can stay out but keep your phone on you. Be home by 9."_ She compromised. _"I'll call you later."_

"Bye mom." I hung up.

"Did you say something?" Troy mumbled.

I laid down next to Troy and shook my head. "Nothing important. Go back to sleep Troy."

"Okay." He got comfortable against me. He started softly snoring. I shook him a little and he didn't wake up. I put a pillow next to him and walked out of Troy's room.

"Where's Troy?" Lucy asked me as I walked into the kitchen.

"Sleeping. He told me he hasn't slept in a couple days." She frowned. "We got into a little fight the other day." I explained to her.

"About what?" She asked me, curiously. "Oh, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. Sometimes I just talk." She put her fingers over her mouth.

I giggled. "Me too. I just talk and talk and sometimes I don't even realize I'm talking. But anyways. My mother is crazy and she acts weird when Troy's around. He slept over my house when I had my graduation party. She came in when she got home in the morning and freaked out. We didn't do anything. We were just sleeping." I sighed. "I need a mothers perspective on something. Can I ask you a question?"

Lucy smiled at me and leaned against the counter. "Sure honey."

"You know me pretty well right?" I bit my lip gathering my thoughts. "I mean like my personality and stuff." She shrugged and nodded. "If I was your daughter and I brought home Troy would you think he was a good fit for me?"

I watched her think for a moment. "Well I think you're a sweetheart. I do think you and Troy are wonderful together. You certainly make each other happy. If you were my daughter I wouldn't be bothered by you dating him. Troy is a nice boy. You guys are young and I am worried about you both. I trust you aren't going to end up like I did." She said in her motherly voice.

"There is nothing wrong with the way you turned out" I said quietly. "You have a husband who loves you and a happy, healthy, amazing son. A house, a couple cars, Love." She smiled at me. "What more could you need?"

Lucy came around and hugged me tightly. "You're absolutely right." I squeezed her back. "You know I have to make cookies for a potluck tomorrow. Do you want to help me?"

I smiled at her. "I'd love to help. I love baking." I popped out of my seat. "Where do we start?"

We left to go to the store and got some ingredients. We talked about stuff I wouldn't feel comfortable talking to my mom about I felt really comfortable being myself around Lucy. I know she wouldn't judge me like my mom would. She and Troy are very good listeners. We got back to Troy's house and I checked on him. He was still sleeping soundly. I walked into the kitchen and washed my hands.

"I've got this fantastic recipe my mother gave to me. I just can't find it." Lucy said as she looked through her cook books. "Oh look here it is." She handed it to me.

"Oh, Chocolate Chip. My favorite." I pulled out all the ingredients. Lucy set the oven and got the cookie sheet ready. We mixed the ingredients according to the recipe. We made a lot of cookie dough. We put the first batch in the oven and sat on the couch with Mr. Bolton.

"So Gabi, Where are you going to school?" Troy's Dad asked me.

"UCLA, I'm leaving in August." I explained.

"Why did you finish school out here?" Lucy asked.

I sighed. "Cause my mother wanted some quality time with me and my dad is always busy. I don't understand because they are equally busy now-a-days. She's taking care of my Papa Rocks."

"How is he doing?" Mr. Bolton asked.

I frowned. "Not good."

"I'm sorry Gabi." Lucy gave me a hug.

I shrugged. "I just don't want him to suffer any longer." Thankfully the timer went off and we went to check the cookies. The first batch was done and I started the second one.

"Do I smell cookies?" A sleepy voice said from the living room. I looked up and Troy walked into the kitchen. "Yes Cookies!"

He went to grab one but Lucy smacked his hand away. "Not for you Troy Maxwell."

The smile grew on my face and Troy glared at his mom then at me. "Don't even start Gabriella Katherine." He teased.

I giggled. "That's so cute! Troy Maxwell." Lucy left to the living room and I put the cookies in the oven and set the timer. "How was your nap?" I dipped my finger in the cookie dough.

"It was good." I put my finger on his lips and he sucked the dough off my finger. I bit my bottom lip. "Mmm… Cookie Dough and Gabi, my favorite combination" I giggled quietly.

I washed my hands off and put the rest of the dough in the fridge. "Your mom and I went to the store are making cookies for her work." I walked over to Troy and he wrapped his arms around me. "I love your mom."

He smiled. "Me too and she loves you too." He kissed my forehead. "Who couldn't love you?"

I rolled my eyes and kissed his lips. "You're cute."

He winked at me. "I know." I rolled my eyes again and I moved out of his grip. "Where are you going?"

"Spending quality time with my favorite Boltons." I giggled and walked into the living room and sat in between Troy's parents.

He scoffed when he followed me in the room. "They're your favorite Boltons?" Troy said, putting his hand on his chest acting like he was offended.

Mr. Bolton chuckled. "You heard her right son." He wrapped his arms around me for a tight hug.

"I'm so offended right now." He said sitting on the chair, pouting like a 5 year old.

I laughed. "If it helps. You're number 3" I winked at him and he scoffed and turned his back to me. I got up and flicked him. "Suck it up Troy, you're 18 years old."

He started getting up and I took off running towards his room. I hid in his blankets trying to be as quiet as possible. I heard him walk into the room. "I wonder where Gabi is." He shuffled around. "Nope, not in the closet." He shuffled around once again. "Not in my underwear drawer." I giggled quietly, then covered my mouth. "I think I heard something." He yawned. "I'm so tired, I think I'm going to take a nap." He plopped down on top of me.

I grunted. I grabbed some part of him from under the blanket. He let out a short yell. "Are you okay?" I lifted my head from under the blanket and looked at him worriedly.

He chuckled. "I was faking." He smirked. "I found you." He pinned my hands down. "Now, you have to say Troy Maxwell Bolton is my favorite Bolton ever."

"Or what?" I dared him, raising my eyebrows.

He smirked at me. "Or I will have to tickle you." I shook my head. "You have 10 seconds.. Don't make me count."

"Too bad I'm not going to say it." I stuck my tongue out at him.

He started counting from ten. I yawned and he pulled the covers off me and sat on me. "5...4... 3.. 2... Don't make me say it."

I rolled my eyes. "Man, I'm tired."

"One!" He started tickling me sides and I squealed and squirmed. "are you going to say it?"

I nodded. "Yes, Troy!" I yelled. "Stop it!" I tried to reach for his hands.

He pinned me down again and smiled at me. "Say Troy Maxwell Bolton is my favorite Bolton ever."

I smirked. "Nope." He started tickling me. "Troy Maxwell B-Bolton" I burst out in giggles. "Is my favorite Bolton E-ever!" I screamed and tried to get away from him.

He chuckled and rolled off me. "Was that so hard?" I shook my head. I tried to catch my breath. He kissed my lips. "You're very sexy when you scream my name."

I smacked his chest and rolled my eyes. "I have cookies to check on." He laughed from behind me as I walked out the door. I went down to the kitchen.

"Oh I got it sweetheart, don't worry." Lucy smiled. "Go beat up Troy."

I giggled. 'Will do." I ran back upstairs and jumped on Troy. He was still laying on his bed. "Your mom said I could beat you up."

He laughed. "Is that so?"

I nodded. "But I won't because I'm nice." I rolled off him and opened his drawer next to his bed.

"What are you doing?" He asked watching me.

I smiled. "Being nosy." I pulled out a box of unopened condoms. "Fire and Ice… Nice." I threw them at Troy. I pulled out a picture of Michaela in a green dress. "Ew." I put it on the bed next to me. I found a black sharpie in the drawer and put an X on her face. I handed it to Troy. "Here you go."

Troy laughed and got up. He put the picture in the garbage in front of me. "Are you enjoying yourself?"

"Yeah, this is fun. You should try it." I pulled out a magazine. "Playboy? Let's take a look." I opened the magazine and looked at the naked girl in front of me. "She has porn star nipples."

He looked at me, embarrassed and confused. "What are porn star nipples?"

I turned around the magazine. "Those things. They're like 2 inches long." Troy laughed. "They are!" I flipped the page. "She has pepperoni nipples."

"I don't even want to know." He sat next to me.

I threw the magazine in the garbage. "Well you don't need that." I smirked at him and continued rummaging through the drawer. "Nothing interesting." He handed me the box condoms. I put them in and found a plain condom. "This is expired."

He laughed. "That was from health class freshman year."

I ripped the package open and unrolled the condom. I started blowing it up. He watched me with an amused face. I tied it off and hit it to him. "Let's play keep the condom balloon off the ground." He chuckled and hit it back to me. I spiked the balloon and hit him in the face. I burst out laughing.

He hit it back to me but I was too busy laughing and I let it hit the ground. "You lose Gab." He pointed to the balloon on the floor. I leaned over and picked it up. I uncapped the sharpie next to me and drew a face on it. I put the pen back in his junk drawer. "What's it's name?"

I thought for a minute. "Connie... Connie the Condom." I put it in the corner of his room and laid on the bed. He crawled next to me. "Today was an alright day."

"How so?" He asked, laying his head on his arms.

"Even though Bree and dad went home today. We made up, I ran 2 miles, I made cookies and bonded with your parents. I managed to get into a fight without yelling at my mom." He chuckled at the last one. "I can say it's pretty successful."

He scooted over and kissed my lips. "I love you."

"I love you too cookie." I winked at him. I put my hands on either side of his face and kissed him gently over and over again. "Muah!" I smacked my lips against his and laid back. I pulled out my phone. "Take a picture with me."

"Alright." He sat up. I sat in between his legs and held up my phone. I smiled and took the picture. I turned my phone over and he was sticking out his tongue. Troy laughed. "That's a good one."

"Come on Smile in this one." I said hitting his chest. I held the phone out and smiled, taking a picture. I turned the camera over. "This is a good one. Come on one silly one."

I held out my phone and made a silly face. I took the picture. "That is one hideous picture. You better keep it."

"I will." I saved my pictured and leaned back against him. I looked at my text messages.

_"Got home safely, Thank you for everything. Miss you shit head :)"_ Bree texted me and I giggled.

_"You're welcome, Miss you too Bitch."_ I texted back.

Troy laughed from behind me. "You guys are so nice to each other."

"You know they're your best friend if you can insult each other without getting angry." I explained and put my phone next to me. I kissed his cheek.

He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close to him. I kissed his lips. He kissed me back slowly. He moved back but I pulled him closer kissing his lips firmly. He smiled into the kiss and moved his hands down to my butt. I giggled quietly and poked my tongue out. Troy's tongue met mine and we went into a full blown make out session. My hands roamed his body for a change.

"Troy, Gabi Cookies are done." His mom called from outside the door.

I pulled my lips away from Troy's "Cookies!" I said excitedly ripping myself away from him. I ran out the door.

Troy chuckled from behind me. "What a weirdo." I heard him mutter before he got up.

"Heard that!" I yelled back to him as I walked down the stairs toward the kitchen.

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	17. Recreation

**Troy's POV**

Things with Gabriella and I were back to normal. We moved on for our little fight, putting it behind us. Gabi's Grandpa was getting worse though. It was stressing her mom out which stressed Gabi out. They were fighting more than usual, at each others throats constantly. Since fourth of July was coming up I thought I would do something nice for Gabi, get her away from all the drama going on in her house.

The fourth was on a Wednesday and it was the Saturday before. Gabi and I are going on our first real date tonight. We haven't really went on dates, we just hung out all the time. I was taking her to the cliché dinner and a movie. I knew Gabi wouldn't mind.

I walked up to her door and knocked. I was greeted by Gabi with a gentle kiss. "Hi babe." She smiled at me. She yelled back to her mom. "I'm leaving mom, bye." She closed the door behind her and walked with me to the truck.

"How is your day going?" I kissed the back of her hand and opened the door for her.

She thanked me with a kiss on the cheek. "It is much better now." I winked at her and shut the door. I walked around to the driver's side and got in. "Guess what I'm finished with? I was going to tell you later but I might as well tell you now" She smiled excitedly, putting on her seatbelt.

I put on mine and started the truck. "What's that babe?"

"I finished my Driver's ED and I'm taking my permit test on Friday." She squealed excitedly.

I smiled at her. "That's great baby." I started driving. "Dinner first or movie?" I put my hand on her knee.

"Dinner." She turned the radio up and sang along to a song on the radio. We pulled up to a little restaurant. I got out and helped her out. We had a nice quiet dinner where we talking about random things instead of heavy college, drama, and family talk.

We got to the movie theatres and were looking up at the titles that were playing. "So, pick one you want to see." I wrapped my arms around her neck as she stood in front of me. She looked up at the titles.

She clicked her tongue and sighed. "Nothing really looks good." She turned around and frowned at me.

"We don't have to watch a movie here, we can go to my house… or yours?" I suggested with a shrug. I put my hands on her hips then slid them into the back pockets of her cut offs.

Her eyes flicked up at me. "I have Netflix at home, We can watch movies there?"

"Will your mom be home?" I asked. Her mom wasn't my biggest fan. It sucked that she didn't like me but it wouldn't be the first time. I just wanted to spend time with Gabi.

"I think so, If she gives us trouble then we can go to your house." She assured me. She stood on her toes and kissed my lips. "I love you."

"I love you too beautiful." I wrapped my arms around her in a tight hug. She squealed quietly. I chuckled. "Let's go to yours"

We walked back to my truck and I drove to Gabi's house. Gabi opened the doors and we walked upstairs to her room quietly. She turned on her flat screen while I crawled into her bed. "Here." She threw the remote back at me and it hit me square in the forehead.

"Ow!" I rubbed my forehead. "Gabi!" I said quietly.

She turned back at me and started giggling. "Did I hit you?" I nodded and she giggled even more and crawled over to me. She kissed my forehead. "Sorry sweetheart. I played softball when I was little. I wasn't into it. I just kept running around the bases. They tried to sign me up for track at school but I was not having it. The track girls at my school were bitches." She sighed. "Besides, Anyone can join the track team."

I chuckled and kissed her cheeks. "You are not just anyone." I winked at her. "What are we watching first?"

"Mean Girls. Duh." She turned the movie on and crawled in bed with me. I wrapped my arms around her. She cuddled against me and watched her movie. About half way in she looked up at me. "What's your favorite move?"

"Space Jam." I said with a chuckle. She looked at me. "Please tell me you've seen Space Jam."

She giggled and rolled her eyes. "I have. I just thought it would be something else, not Space Jam."

"Let me guess, your favorite is Mean Girls." I smirked at her.

"My favorite move is first The Sandlot, then Mean Girls, then The Goonies." She smirked back at me. "But Mean Girls is epic. If it's not on your favorite movies list then you are incompetent."

I laughed. "That's harsh." She shrugged. "It is a funny movie, its my favorite girly movie."

She smiled at me and kissed my lips. "I just love you more and more." Gabi started leaving kisses all over my face.

'None for Gretchen Weiner's, Bye." I pushed her forehead away from me and scooted away from her.

She scoffed. "That was so rude Troy Maxwell!" She crossed her arms and pretended to be mad.

I chuckled and pulled her back to me. "I apologize baby" I nuzzled my face into her neck.

I felt her smile. "How can I be mad at you? You are so cute and you can correctly quote Mean Girls." She looked at me and I met my lips with hers. "You're just the whole package aren't you?"

I shook my head at Gabi and she cuddled back against me. I kissed the top of her ear. "I love you Gabriella Katherine Montez."

"I love you too Troy Maxwell Bolton." Gabi yawned and rested her head on my chest. "What's the story behind your middle name?" She looked up at me.

"It was my great Grandpa's name. Maxwell Herbert Peterson" I explained. "My mom was really close with her grandpa. He died before I was born though, so I never got to meet him."

"Aw" She smiled at me. "I love Grandpas! They're my favorite. Papa is so fun. My grandpa on my dad's side knows everything I swear. I can ask him any question and he literally knows the answer to everything. I don't know if he's making it up but it sounds right." I chuckled and played with her hair. "My mom is selfish and put her name in my name. I swear if my dad didn't name compromise on my middle name my first name would be Katherine too. My dad wanted Gabriella Emilinda Montez, but my moms a bitch so she was like Katherine." She rolled her eyes. "I don't know how my dad put up with her for 18 years."

I kissed the top of her head. "People change all the time, it's inevitable. Maybe they were one way when you first meet but time passes and things happen and people change."

She looked up at me. "Don't ever change please."

"I'll try the best I can not to change." I kissed the tip of her nose. "I never want you to change. You are perfect just the way you are."

"I think this was the best first date ever." She played with the hem of my shirt. "I've been on a couple dates with Travis but they were all boring. I didn't really go on dates with Gabriel he just wanted to get in my pants and do drugs."

"How did smoking effect your ADHD?" I asked curiously.

"It calmed me down a lot. I just sat around or slept or cleaned. God, I'm so weird." She giggled on my chest then looked up at me. "Did you take Michaela on dates?"

"We went on a couple, we didn't do anything remotely interesting." I said, "Our relationship was like a slice of white bread compared to yours and mine Gab."

She laughed. "What is ours then?"

"Ours is like a rainbow cupcake. Interesting as hell." She laughed even harder. "I'm terrible at analogies."

Gabriella smirked at me. "I noticed." She sat up and continued watching the movie. I got up and looked around her room. I walked over to her dresser and looked at a picture of us in the front. I picked it up, it happened to be a pile. I looked through them. They were mostly of us. There were some of her and Taylor. One of her and Bree. I found one of me by myself, sleeping.

I looked over at Gabi. "When did you take this?" Gabs head turned to look at me and I showed her the picture of me sleeping. She smiled. "If you weren't my girlfriend I would find this creepy. Borderline stalker." I winked at her.

"Shut up." She giggled. "I took that like two weeks ago. I snuck into your room and had sex with you while you were sleeping then re-clothed you and took a picture." She said sarcastically. "But I think it was two weeks ago."

"I'm going to burn it." She got up and ran over to me. She grabbed the picture out of my hand.

"If you burn it, I will cry and I wont kiss you ever again." She threatened. She took the rest of the pictures and out them back where they were. She pushed me back toward the bed. "Go lay down."

"Yes ma'am." I laid back on the bed and crawled under her blankets. She crawled over to me and laid down next to me. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her against me. "I love you."

She kissed my lips. "I love you too." She smiled at me.

I wrapped my arm around her waist and closed my eyes. Her bed was entirely too comfortable and the fact that I was surrounded in her scent wasn't helping. I was growing increasingly tired. I haven't had an insomnia spell since graduation. It was easy falling asleep next to Gabi and it was hard without her.

I woke up and looked around. I realized I was in Gabi's room. I looked over and she was sleeping next to me. I looked at the time. It was almost 8 in the morning. I shifted and Gabi groaned next to me. "Why are you awake?"

"I don't know," I mumbled. She pulled me against her and cuddled against her.

"Go back to sleep." She mumbled sleepily against my chest.

I did as I was told and went back to sleep. I felt like once I closed my eyes I was awake but this time there was arguing. I pretended like I was asleep still like I did usually when I woke up to Gabi and her mom fighting.

"When he wakes up I want him out." Gabi's mom said. "I mean it Gabriella."

"He didn't even doing anything mom, you're being so ridiculous!" Gabi said, she was sitting next to me. Her hand on my back protectively. She started rubbing my back. She knew I was awake.

"I'm serious Gabriella." The door slammed and Gabi sighed from next to me.

She leaned down and kissed my ear. "I know you're awake, she's gone." She rested her head against my back. "I'm sorry."

I opened my eyes and played with her hair that covered my face. "It's okay. We can go to my house, my parents are working today. Unless you have plans.." I said quietly. I rolled over and she rested her head against my chest.

"Can we go to the lake?" Gabi lifted her head up and looked at me.

I smiled at her. "I was going to take you camping this weekend, just me and you."

Her face lit up. "Never mind, I can wait." She leaned over and kissed my chin. "I'm going to take a shower and get dressed. If you hear my mom pretend like you're asleep."

I nodded. When she got up I pulled her back to me and kissed her lips firmly. "I love you." I said looking at her.

"I love you too babe." Gabi kissed me again and went into her bathroom.

I rolled back on my stomach and waited for her to finish. She came out fully clothed and she sat on my back. "There is the rest of your bed and you decided to sit on me." I chuckled and rolled over and she fell on her back with her legs draped over my stomach.

Gabi moved up and sat back on my stomach. "You are way more comfortable than my bed."

I rolled my eyes at her. "Let's go before your mom harpoons me or something."

Gabi giggled and slid off me. I got up and put on my shoes. I grabbed my things and walked over to Gabi. She was putting her keys in her purse. "I'm ready, let's go." She walked over to me and ran her fingers through my hair fixing it.

"Thank you." I gave her a kiss on the cheek before we walked out of her room. I walked behind her and she let me down the stairs and out the front door. Her mom was no where in sight so we just left.

I drove her over to my house and we got out. She ran inside like a child and I closed the door. I walked inside my house. She was hugging my mom tightly. She didn't work on Sundays. Mom pulled away from Gab and hugged me. "Hey sweetheart, how was your date?"

"It was good. I have to go shower and change. I'll back right back." I walked away from then and got in the shower. I loved that my mom loved Gabi. I knew if Emma was still alive she would have loved Gabi too. They would have been good friends. I often wondered what Emma would be like if she hadn't died so early. I wish she had gotten the chance to grow up and do things.

I finished showering and got dressed in my room. I made a mental note to do laundry on Monday. I walked down stairs and I heard Gabi and Mom talking on the couch. "Can I just keep you forever?" My mom said.

Gabi giggled from next to her. "I wish. I'd rather live here than at my house."

I stopped on the steps and watched them. My mom frowned. "Is she still bothering you?"

Gabi sighed. "Yes, every little thing I do she gets mad about and bitches at me. I know it's a mom thing but she wants me so wound up I can't take it." She put her head in her hands. Mom rubbed her back slowly. She sat back up. "I miss my dad so much. I miss my friends but I don't want to leave Troy."

"I know honey, I know." She pulled Gabi in for another hug.

I went back up the stairs slowly and ran loudly down the stairs. "Hey guys." I said, looking at them.

Gabi's head shot up looking over at me. "Hey." She smiled.

"I'm going to go call grandma." Mom said pulling away from Gabi, walking into the kitchen.

"What the matter?" I asked Gabs. She was looking at the ground.

"Just tired." She smiled at me. "Wanna go watch TV in your bed?"

I smiled at her. "Sure baby, come on." She walked over to me and I wrapped my arms around her slim waist. We walked back in my room and she laid on my bed. I laid next to her and wrapped my arms around her tightly. I kissed the top of her head. "I love you so much Gab"

"I love you too Troy." She looked up at me. I kissed her lips slowly.

I ran my fingers through her hair. I smiled at her. "You're the most beautiful woman I've ever met."

She blushed and hid her face in my chest. "Stop that." She mumbled. I chuckled and turned on the TV with my remote. She sat up and played with my hair. "You need a hair cut sweetheart." She pushed my hair back and looked at me. "Not super short but not long like this. Maybe a little longer on top then around the back." She analyzed my hair and I just watched her.

"You should never cut your hair. It's perfect." I kissed her forehead. "We should do something after our nap."

She looked at me. "Like what?"

"Let's go to the arcade or something." I offered.

She giggled at me. "You are a dork, but the arcade sounds fun. We can win a whole bunch of tickets and then give them to little kids."

I scoffed. "What? No I want my plastic blow-up hammer so I can hit you with it." I joked.

Gabi rolled her eyes with a smile. "We should go now. I'm not tired anymore." She jumped up and sat on my stomach. "Let's go."

I grunted. "I can't go if you are sitting on me Gabriella." She rolled her eyes at the use of her full name. She slid off me and smacked my thigh. "Why so abusive?" I got up and wrapped my arms around her. "I don't like it that rough."

She burst out laughing and grabbed her purse walking out of my room. "Let's go Bolton." She grabbed my keys and walked out towards the truck.

"Gab and I are going out Ma, I'll be back later. Love you." I called out to her.

"Okay, Love you too." I heard her call out from the kitchen.

I saw Gabi sitting in the truck looking down at her phone. She was so gorgeous. She looked up at me and I smirked at her. I got in the truck, turning it on. "Why are you looking at me like that?" She asked me, putting her seatbelt on.

"Just admiring your beauty." I said with a wink. She rolled her eyes and looked back down on her phone. "What are you looking at?" I asked curiously backing out of the driveway.

"Looking at the pictures of your wiener I took while you were sleeping." Gabi said with a straight face. I pressed on the brakes and looked at her. She just smirked at me. I chuckled and continued driving. We went to the arcade which was connected to a mini golf course.

Once we got in the inner videogame nerd in Gabi was unleashed. She ran straight to the token counter and gave them some money. She came back to me, breathless with a handful of tokens. Her smile grew. "And you thought I was a dork for wanting to go to the arcade." I chuckled.

"I got like 110 tokens!" Gabi said excitedly. "It will probably take me about 10 minutes to use them all."

I shook my head at her. "Save some cause I want to race you."

She smiled at me. "Okay, can I go now?" I held my hand out. "Oh, I forgot." She smiled apologetically. She put about half the tokens in my hand and put the rest in her pocket. She raced off and I went and played my own games. I was playing the deal or no deal game and she came up next to me. "I at least have two hundred tickets already." She announced.

"Did you spend all your tokens?" I asked looking at her after I finished opening all my suitcases. I kept the 14 because it was my lucky number. I still lost the 100 ticket but I still had the 200 ticket suitcase.

"No I did not." She said matter-of-factly. "I still have plenty." She looked up at the screen and scoffed. "The banker only offers 68. No deal." She took the liberty of pressing the white button for me.

I chuckled. "Stay here with me, you're my good luck charm." She smiled and moved to in between my legs and leaned against me. "I have to pick three more, which ones?"

I wrapped my arms around her and she pressed 16. "1 ticket! Ha!" I chuckled and kissed the back of her neck. She pressed number 5 next. "75! I'm sorry." She pouted at me.

I smiled. "It's alright. Pick another one." She turned around and picked the first suitcase.

"3! You totally have the 200 ticket suitcase." She jumped up and down excitedly. There was only the 200 and the 10 ticket suitcases left.

Gabi looked at the screen intently and watched as the banker picked the offer. "No deal" I said, pressing the button , turning down the 75 ticket offer. They opened the suitcase and I had indeed won 200 tickets.

Gabi squealed and jumped up and down from in front of me. She wrapped her arms around me and kissed me, almost knocking me off of the stool I was sitting on. "You won!" She said excitedly. She leaned over and wrapped off the last ticket and picked them up off the floor.

I nodded and kissed her forehead. "We won." I winked at her.

We went off and played a couple more games. We decided to turn in our tickets and get some prizes before we went to the other side of the arcade. We had in total 735 tickets. Gabi went apes hit at the prize table. She got me a plastic hammer, some candy and a shock pen. She got a cheap little basketball hoop for her room and some other things. We put all our things in a bag then walked to the other side of the arcade.

Gabi got on the motor cycle ride and waved me over. "Come on Troy, I'm going to beat you."

I shook my head. "Don't be so confident Miss Montez." We put coins in and we raced together. We both lost but I was in 9th place and she in 10th, so I technically won between the two of us. "What now?"

"Um.." She pondered and looked around the room. "Let's race cars this time." She skipped over to the cars and sat down, fixing her chair. I sat on the one next to her and we put our coins in. She barely beat me and she threw her hands up in celebration. "How does it feel to lose to a non licensed driver?" She gloated.

"Let's play air hockey." I offered and walked over to the table. "I'm going to kick your ass at air hockey." I put the coins in. She picked up the puck once I was ready. I gripped the mallet in my hand and waited for her to hit it. "What are you scared?" I smirked.

She rolled her eyes and she it the puck and it when in. "One for Montez." She smirked back at me. I picked up the puck and hit it to her, we battled for a minute before I hit it into her goal. "Lucky shot Bolton." She scowled. The game was tied 6 to 6 and she gave me at least 3 goals by hitting it into her own goal. She hit the puck and I hit it back hard. She hit it backward and it went into her own goal. "You're fucking kidding me!" She yelled entirely too loudly.

I threw my hands up in celebration. "Told you I would kick your ass…. Actually you beat yourself so I didn't have to." She narrowed her eyes and growled at me. She walked in front of me and towards the exit. I caught up to her and wrapped my arms around her and pulled her closer to me. She turned to face me. "You are such a sore loser, but I still love you." I kissed her forehead.

A smile crept on her face. "I love you too." I brushed a curl back and placed it behind her ear.

"You're cute, even when you're a sore loser." I smirked at her and she started to pull away. I pulled her back to me. "You aren't going anywhere Montez." I buried my face in her neck leaving soft kisses along the nape of her neck.

She giggled and turned to meet her lips with mine. She kissed my lips and smiled. "I bet I can kick your ass at Skee ball" She challenged.

I smiled. "You're on Gab."

* * *

**Don't forget to Review :)**


	18. Explosion

**Troy's POV**

Today was the fourth of July. Chad's parents were having their annual fourth of July party. It was usually the same as every year, drunk adults, kids down the street setting off illegal fireworks, Etc. This year was going to be different though. Gabi was here and we have plans.

I took my truck to the party. My parents left earlier to help Chad's parents with the set up. Once I got there I parked on the street in front of the house. I saw Gabi's mom's car so Gabs was here already. I walked in the house and got greeted my Lynn, Chad's mom.

"Troy!" She smiled and wrapped her arms around me. Lynn was obviously a little tipsy, she had a half a glass of wine in her hand. "You look so handsome."

I chuckled. "Thank you Lynn."

"Your girl is here. She is beautiful Troy. You picked a winner." Lynn smiled at me before she walked away.

I walked into the back yard and saw my parents talking to Mr. Danforth. I saw Gabi's mom on the other side of the lawn chatting it up with the Ryan and Shar's parents. No teenager in sight. This meant everybody was in the basement. I went around and said hello to everybody. Even Gabi's mom gave me a fake smile and a superficial greeting. I walked to the basement door and down the stairs. Sharpay and Zeke were making out in the corner.

They became an item after graduation. I was very glad she was off my back. Taylor, Gabi, and Kelsi were talking. Gabi had her back to me. Taylor looked at me and smirked. I put my finger to my lips and walked up to them. I stood to Gabi's left and tapped her right shoulder. She looked to the right then to the left and saw me.

"Troy!" She popped up and wrapped her arms around me tightly.

"I can't believe you fell for that." I smiled at her giving her a gentle kiss. I sat down in the chair she was sitting in and she sat on my lap. "So what were you ladies talking about?"

Gabi blushed and looked at Kelsi. "Nothing really." I tickled her sides gently. She squirmed and grabbed my hands. "Knock it off Bolton."

Taylor laughed. "Yeah, Bolton. Don't you have your own friends to talk to?"

"I am talking to my friends McKessie." I turned to Kelsi. "you're my friend, Right Kels?"

She looked at me flustered. "I.. uh… I guess."

"See." I pointed at Kelsi. Gabi got up and pulled me up she pushed me away. "Go talk to Chad. We're having girly time."

I looked at her in disgust. "I don't even want to know." Gabi laughed. I smiled at her then gave her a kiss and walked away. I walked over to Chad and Jason playing video games on the TV. "What's up guys?"

"Same old" Chad said, shooting at a guy he saw in the distance. "Yes!"

"I think your mom is drunk already." I said, sitting back on the couch.

Chad snorted. "She is on bottle number 3 of wine. Between my mom and yours they're both wasted."

They played for a little longer and Jason threw me the controller. He and Ryan went off to get some more beer. I played a couple round of Call of Duty. Gabi plopped down next to me just as we started the new game. She was getting immersed in the game. "Who's Charlie?" She asked. "Are you the red dot or the triangle?"

"Gab, don't worry about it." Chad chuckled.

"I wanna play." She said, looking at me.

"When I-" I got cut off when I died. I handed the controller to her. "Here, play."

I could tell she either knew how to play already or was a very quick learner cause she just killed 3 people in a row. I raised my eyebrows. "I'm impressed babe, I thought you didn't know how to play"

She smirked. "I never said that." She just killed somebody else. "I just turn off the sound so I don't hear all the little sayings and I wasn't sure about the ma- Oh you mother fucker." She just died.

I chuckled. "You are very amusing to watch." I wrapped my arm around her waist and watched her face as she played. I kissed her cheek gently but she pushed me away. "Hey!"

"No distractions." She said, throwing a grenade. She was kicking everybody's ass. She was really good at Call of Duty. I watched her intently. Whenever she would shoot she would stick out her tongue like a dog. Whenever she killed someone a slow smile crept on her face and whenever she died she would curse like a sailor. The game finished and she handed me the controller and Chad looked at her astonished. "That is how you do it boys." She got up and winked at us.

"Who the hell are you?" Chad said breathlessly from next to me. "I don't even want to play anymore, I just lost to a girl!"

Taylor scooted on his lap and slapped his chest. "Don't be sexist Chad."

I walked away and smiled at Gabi who was drinking from her soda. I pulled up a chair and sat in front of her. "I didn't know you could play COD like that."

She just shrugged and smiled. "You never asked. You know I sat at home in LA. What do you think we did? Play make over?"

I chuckled. "I don't know." I put my hands on her knee. "You never fail to astonish me."

She rolled her eyes. "It's just video games."

"That's not the point. You're perfect at everything, except Air hockey." I winked at her.

She groaned. "I want a rematch! I will beat you!" She put her soda down and wrapped her arms around my neck. "I should have brought my X-Box over here, I can beat you at any game. Any time."

I chuckled at her. "I'm afraid I believe you." She sat on my lap and I kissed her nose. "I have something special planned later."

Gabi looked at me, suddenly interested. "Oh yeah? Like what?" She crossed her legs.

"It's a surprise." I smiled at her and kissed her lips. "You'll have to wait and see."

"You know I am not that patient Troy." She glared at me. "Can I guess at least?" I shrugged with a smirk. "Are we going back to the arcade? Are we going out? Are we going to a club? Are we going to your house? Are we going to the lake?" I shrugged in response to each one of her questions. "You are not helping!" She pouted. "Can I get a little something here?"

I nodded. "There will be a lot of this." I leaned in and kissed her lips firmly. I put my hand on her lap to keep her balanced. She wrapped her arms around my neck and deepened the kiss. I teased her bottom lip with my tongue. She whimpered quietly and met her tongue with mine. I wrapped my free arm around her waist. She grasped on to the back of my hair. I ran my hand along her thigh slowly. I started to pull away and she tugged on my bottom lip softly. I kissed over to her ear. "That was just a preview."

I moved back to face her and her eyes opened. She bit her bottom lip gently and smiled. "Can't wait."

"Okay good, you're done making out." Taylor walked over to us. "You are being summoned by your mother Gabs."

"I swear she knows when I am with Troy so she can split us apart." Gabi groaned and got off my lap. She kissed the top of my head. "I'll be right back." I watched her walk up the stairs and walked over to Chad.

"Where'd Gabi go?" Chad asked.

"Talking to her mom." I explained. "Do you get any fireworks this year?"

Chad broke out into a smile. "Hell yeah, man."

"We should go to the lake and shoot them off. I was planning taking Gab there anyway. We can move our party." I suggested.

"Let's do it, we can leave around 7." He looked up at the clock. "I'll go tell everybody."

I changed the channel on the TV and sat back on the couch. Chad and I spent a lot of time down here when we were growing up. This is where all our parties would be or at Ryan and Sharpay's house. I would never tell them I lost my virginity in a guest room in their house. I was too drunk to even remember who it was. I was never much of a drinker of hard alcohol and that was the first time and I drank a lot of hard alcohol. I felt a hand on my leg, disrupting my thoughts.

"If you keep thinking like that your brain is going to explode." Gabi giggled quietly from next to me. "So I heard we were going to the lake was that your surprise?"

I looked over at her and nodded. "Sorry for ruining the surprise." I smiled apologetically.

She rolled her eyes. "I don't care, as long as I'm with you." I leaned over and bit her arm gently. "Ow! What the fuck!" She giggled and hit my arm. "Troy." She rubbed her arm and looked at it. "Look you left a mark" She held her arm up to me.

I smiled at her. "Just marking my territory." I winked at her.

"Oh shut up." She put her feet on my lap and leaned against the arm of the couch.

I smiled at her. "I forgot to tell you how beautiful you look today." I leaned over and kissed her shoulder. She was just wearing shorts and a tank top but she could look beautiful in anything and everything. Gabi smiled at me and gave me a peck. "Love you."

"Love you dos." She flicked my nose then got up and started running away.

I got up and started chasing her around. She ran up the stairs and out of the basement. I followed her and finally caught up to her outside in the backyard. We fell on the grass, laughing. I wrapped my arms around her giving her a kiss on the forehead.

"Gabriella, get up. What the hell are you doing?" Gabi's mom whispered harshly, looking at us. "Get up. You're embarrassing me."

Gabi automatically got up. "We were just messing around mom, no big deal."

I got up after her and stood next to her. "Knock it off Gabriella. You are almost 18 years old, start acting like it." She stalked off and I looked over at my mom who was staring at us.

Mom got up and walked over. "You guys alright?" She put her arm around Gabi. "You okay Gabs?"

Gabi nodded. Her cheeks were a little red. "I'm okay. Mom was just being mom." She shrugged.

"I'm sorry sweetheart." She hugged Gabi. "If you ever need anything, I'm here." She kissed her forehead and walked back to the table.

I grabbed Gabi's hand and walked back toward the house. I looked over at Gabi's mom who was glaring at my mom. I raised my eyebrows then turned to Gabi. "I think my mom loves you more than she loves me." I nudged her.

She rolled her eyes at me and smiled. "Not true." I wrapped my arms around her. "But I love your mom so much. She's so awesome."

"She definitely loves you too." I kissed the back of her head. I opened the basement door for her and she walked down the stairs. I closed the door behind me and followed her down. We all snuck out of the basement around seven and we took a couple cars down to the lake. Gabi was riding in the truck with me as usual. She has been quiet after the incident with her mom. I put my hand on her knee as I drove. "Are you alright babe? You've been quiet"

She shrugged. "Just embarrassed and tired of my mom. I mean, who does that? Your poor mom was getting daggers from my mom. She was just making sure we were alright." She sighed. "Seriously can I move in with you?" She let out a small giggle.

"Sure sweetheart. My mom would love to keep you around." I squeezed her knee.

Gabi smiled to herself. "You know we act like an old married couple sometimes." I smiled over at her then looked back at the road. "You call me sweetheart, Don't get me wrong I love your pet names, but it makes me feel old sometimes."

I chuckled. "I understand." I turned down the dirt road, following Chad. "What do you want me to do? Be like 'Hey sexy, lets go fuck?' " She burst out in giggles. "or would you prefer 'Yo bitch suck my dick?' "

She covered her face as she laughed. She leaned against me calming herself down. "Those are equally terrible. I enjoy sweetheart." I kissed her forehead and parked. She leaned over to kiss me. "Yo Bitch, Suck my Dick." She said in her best ghetto voice.

I reached over and tickled her sides. She squirmed and tried to get away from me. I stopped tickling her and kissed her lips. "I love you." I smiled at her.

"You too Bolton." She pushed me away and got out the car.

We didn't do anything special until it got dark. We started a fire and sat around it just talking. Chad got up and walked to his car. He waved me over. I walked over and helped him with the fireworks. We called the guys over and started lighting them off. Jason and Chad were having too much fun. I walked back to Gabi and wrapped my arms around her.

"Surprise." I whispered against her ear. She smiled back at me. "It's not much but I thought it would be nice." My eyes shot up to the firework that just exploded in the sky.

"It's perfect Troy." She kissed my lips gently. "Thank you." She leaned against me and looked up at the sky. She then looked over at Jason, who was on fire. Jason dropped to the ground and rolled around screaming. Everybody started laughing, watching him.

"Only Jason." I said shaking my head. I squeezed my arms around her tighter. "My parents aren't coming home. Come over?" I whispered against the back her neck.

She nodded and turned to face me. She kissed my lips firmly then pulled away quickly. "Sounds good." I smiled at her then rested my chin on her shoulder.

Gabi and I decided to skip out early. We went back to my house. My parents always stayed at Chad's after their parties. Mom and Lynn were good friends. Since mom worked all the time they spend as much time together as possible.

We were cuddled up in my bed watching some show on MTV. Gabi turned to look at me. "Troy?"

I looked over at her. "What's up?" I rubbed her leg.

"Are you still going to study business?" She rolled over and laid in between my legs.

"Probably. I'm meeting with somebody soon. Mom set it up so I'm not really sure." I shrugged. "How come?"

"Just wondering. I've finally decided on a major." She said sliding her fingers under my shirt.

"What is going to be your major?" I asked looking at her while I played with her hair.

"Psychology. Minor in communications. I want to be a therapist." I smiled at her. "I'm good at talking to people, might as well get paid for it right?"

"You'll be very good at it." I leaned over and kissed her forehead. "You'll be amazing at everything you do baby."

She crawled on top of me and kissed my lips firmly. "You promised me a lot of this and I have yet to see it" She smirked at me and pulled my shirt off. She leaned back down and kissed my lips firmly. I stroked my tongue against her lip. She smiled into the kiss. I pulled away and removed her top. I placed kisses down her neck slowly. My hands found the buttons of her shorts and unbuttoned them. I tugged them down slowly. She picked them off then started on my pants.

Once I got them off she connected her lips back to mine. She climbed back on top of me and straddled my waist. I reached around her to take off her bra. Once it was unclasped I threw it on the floor. Her hands were already in my boxers, tugging them down. I lifted my waist up and she pulled them off. She slid down her panties and kicked them somewhere. Her tongue made its way up my thigh while her small hand wrapped around my manhood. I pulled Gabi's hair back and out of her face. She smiled up at me and grasped my balls in her cold hands. "They're so heavy." She whispered. Her hot breath countering the temperature of her cold hands.

I was about to say something but her mouth wrapped around the head of me. I let out a moan instead. Her tongue danced around the tip while her hands stroked the shaft. I leaned my head back against my pillows and held on tighter to her hair. "Fuck, Gabi." I whispered. My breath becoming uneven. Gabi worked her magic hands on me I felt the pressure building up. I looked down at her and she smirked up at me. She released me from her mouth with a pop and crawled back on top of me. I grabbed her ass firmly and rolled over so I was laying on her. I connected my lips with her neck. I pushed two of my fingers into her without warning.

She screamed and dug her nails into the back of my neck. My thumb stroked her clitoris slowly as I pushed my fingers in and out of her. She let out a gasp. "Fuck Troy, oh god." She muttered. I placed my free hand on her breast. I played with her nipple between my thumb and my forefinger. I pulled my fingers out and placed them in my mouth. I moved slowly down her body. She bent her legs up as my face met her folds. I spread her lips apart with my thumbs and started licking. Gabi's hands found my hair and started pulling, not that I mind. I moved my tongue in circles around her slowly, gaining speed. "Holy." I looked up to see Gabi biting one of her hands. "Fuck. Me. Now."

I pulled away and looked up at her. She leaned over and ripped open my package of condoms. I moved up trailing my tongue along her body. She ripped one foil package from the rest then ripped it open with her teeth. She pulled the rubber out and unrolled it on me. She wrapped her legs loosely around my waist. "Are you sure about this?" I asked breathlessly.

I looked up at me and nodded. "I want you. I need you, now." She said pulling my head down, kissing my lips firmly. I placed the head at her entrance and slowly started pushing in. I pushed my tongue against hers and placed my fingers in between hers. She tightened her legs around me and pulled me against her, pushing me all the way in. She let out a soft moan. She kissed my lips firmly. "I love you baby.' Her lips rumbled against mine.

"I love you so much." I released her hands and put my hands on her hips. I thrusted in her slowly, we weren't in any rush. I left kisses down her jaw to her neck and collarbone.

She whimpered from under me. "Faster babe." She encouraged and ran her fingers through my hair. She moved her leg up my body and placed it on my shoulder. She smiled at me. "You'd never know I was this flexible, would you?" She tugged on my hair.

I sped up and she moaned happily. Her back arched up, her hard nipples brushed against my chest. I ran my tongue against her nipple, sucking on it slowly. I bit down on it gently, she moaned louder ripping my head away her chest. I kissed her lips firmly. I moved my fingers down her body. I rubbed her clit slowly. She moaned my name. I smirked at her. "You like that baby?" I asked against her lips. She nodded furiously. I moved my fingers away from her clit and thrusted in and out of her quicker. Her walls started to tighten up, causing me to be pushed on edge.

"I'm gunna-" She put her hands on my back. "Come with me." She demanded, arching her back. Her legs shook from and she threw her head back and dug her nails into my back. We released together at the same time. She trembled from underneath me. I collapsed on top of her. I took the condom off and threw it away. I laid next to her and wrapped my arms around her. We didn't have to talk. We laid there in comfortable silence.

I pulled up the blankets and wrapped them around us. She pulled her hair up into a messy bun and spooned against me. I kissed her shoulder gently. We were sweaty and stuck together. We caught our breath and she turned to face me. I kissed her lips gently. "You okay?" I asked quietly, caressing her cheek.

She smiled at me and nodded. "I'm great." She kissed my lips slowly. "I love you so much." She played with my sweaty hair. "That was the best sex I've ever had." She smiled at me, her cheeks were still flushed. "I think we should take a shower." She rolled over me and pulled me up. She walked towards the door. "Get your white ass over here." I couldn't help but laugh.

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	19. Adoration

**Gabriella's POV**

Today was Friday, the day before Troy's birthday. We were going camping, just the two of us this time. I didn't even bother telling my mom where I was going. I wasn't even home that much since summer started. She was busy dealing with the company since Papa clearly wasn't getting any better. He knew time was limited and so did we. Troy knew I was stressing out about Grandpa and mom, I was thankful we were escaping, even if it was just for a weekend. Mom took me to my DMV appointment and had to drop me off before going back to work. I showered and finished packing my stuff and brought it down stairs. I heard a honk from outside.

Somebody came through the door and picked me up. "Hey beautiful." Troy set me down and smiled. "Long time no see." I haven't seen Troy since early Thursday morning when he had to take me home.

"Hey handsome. You're looking delicious as always." I smirked at him and kissed his lips firmly.

He rolled his eyes at me. "My parents told me to tell you you're invited to dinner on Sunday when we get back for my birthday. Actually they insisted you come, because they miss you." I giggled quietly.

"I'd love to come." I smiled at him and kissed his nose. "Are we ready to go?"

He kissed my lips gently and nodded. "Yes, let's get your things." He carried my bag out to the truck. I climbed in the passengers side and put in a new CD. I put the other one back in it's case. Troy got in and buckled up. I put my seatbelt on as well. "So are you going to tell me how it went?"

I smiled at him. "How what went?" I teased him.

"Your permit test." He looked over at me before starting the truck. "How'd it go?"

I shrugged. "You'll have to wait and see." I turned up the radio and put my feet up. We stopped by the Grocery store before we made it all the way out to the lake. I hopped out the truck and we started walking. "Wait, I forgot my purse." He handed me the keys while he got a cart. I got in the truck and dug around my stuff. I saw his bag open and his box of condoms on top. I laughed to myself and grabbed my purse.

I walked back over to him and handed him the keys. "Why are you laughing?" He asked me as he stuffed the keys in his pocket.

I smiled at him and shook my head. "I saw your box of presents in your bag."

He looked at me confused then started laughing. "Oh those." I stood on the bar under the cart and he wrapped his arms around me, pushing it. "You never know what will happen." He shrugged.

"Planning on getting lucky this weekend Bolton?" I hopped down and pushed the cart with Troy still walking behind me. I smirked at him. He shrugged. "What are we getting?"

"Peanut butter and Jelly of course." He smiled at me. "Is there anything else you want?"

I bit my bottom lip. "Chips are good." I offered. He put some peanut butter and jelly in the cart. We turned down the chip aisle. "Doritos!" I put some ranch ones in the cart and turned to him. "Anything else?"

"We need drinks and ice." He said. Troy kissed the top of my head before walking toward the soda aisle. "What do you want? Soda or water?"

I sighed and looked at Troy then back at the soda. "Both?" I smiled innocently.

He chuckled. "It's really whatever you want baby." I smiled and put a case of water and soda in the cart.

"Now, let's get some ice." I climbed back on the cart and punched my arm out like a superhero. "Up, up and away!" Troy pushed the cart, weaving it through people. I hummed superhero music. We were getting strange looks but we didn't care. We got up to the checkout and put our things on there. "We're going to need two bags of ice too." Troy left to go get them. I pulled out my credit card and swiped it.

Troy grunted and threw the ice in the cart. "Got it." I giggled quietly. I put the bags in the cart and put my card back in my wallet.

"Here's your receipt, have a great day." The cashier said, waving to us. Troy pushed the cart out of the store and we walked out.

I climbed in the back and pulled out the ice chest. He put it on the ground and put the ice in and the food and drinks. He shut it and put it back on the truck. I pushed it back to where it was and tied it back up. Troy helped me down and set me on the ground. I kissed his lips gently. "Thank you Mr. Bolton."

"You're welcome Miss Montez." He opened the door for me and I got in. He closed the door and got in the truck himself.

We drove down to the lake and put the boat in the water. We parked and set up the tent. I brought our things to the tent. I threw down our blankets setting up a little bed for us. I laid down and closed my eyes. I let the windows down, feeling the breeze flow through the tent. "Troy?" I called out, laying on my back.

"What's up?" I opened my eyes to see him peering through the tent. "Are you sleeping already? We just got here."

I giggled and shook my head. "Just resting, What are you doing Troy Bolton?" I sat up and looked at him.

He shrugged. "You'll have to come out to see."

I smiled and got up. I crawled out of the tent and looked around for Troy. He popped up form behind the tent and started spraying me with a water gun. "TROY!" I yelled. I took off toward him and he went the other way. He kept squirting me. "I'm going to kill you Bolton!" I ran over toward him. He was on the dock, getting toward the end. I was dripping wet. The water was freezing.

Troy smiled at me. "I call a truce." He threw the water gun in front of him. I kept walking toward him. "Gabi…" He said wearily.

"You better take your phone and whatever is valuable out of your pockets, because I'm going to kick your fucking ass Bolton." Troy chuckled in front of me and put his things down on the dock. I emptied my pockets in the tent so I'm glad I had nothing of value on me. I ran towards him and tackled him. We fell in the lake together.

We came up and he smiled at me. "Are you mad sweetheart?" He wrapped his arms around me. I grabbed his balls in one of my hands, he let out a shriek.

I smirked at him. "You're so lucky I love you or else I would make sure you could never have babies." I released his testicles from my grip and I wrapped my arms around his neck. "I think we're even now." He nodded silently. I gave him a kiss on the nose and swam away from him.

I got back to the dock and pulled my self on top of it. I walked over to Troy's truck and peeled off my shirt. I put it in the bed of the truck to dry. I pulled off my shorts and put them next to my shirt and walked back to the tent. I wiped my feet off and climbed in the tent. Troy came in shortly after me in his boxers. He changed his boxers and laid down on our blankets and watched me change. "Come here." He held his arms out to me. I was half naked as well. I crawled into his arms.

"I passed, I have my permit now." I told him with a smile. "Mom is going to get me some driving lessons."

Troy smiled at me, running his fingers along my bareback. "That's great baby, but why pay when you have the best instructor in Albuquerque right here?" He gave me a cheesy smile.

I giggled quietly. "You try telling my mom that." He rolled his eyes and smiled. I kissed his chest. "Are you excited for tomorrow almost birthday boy?"

He nodded. "I'm excited to spend it with you baby." He leaned down and kissed my lips. "You taste like lake water." He made a face.

I laughed. "I'm pretty sure we both smell and taste like lake water Troy. Was this man made or nature made? Do you know? Did you ever figure out who's house that was?" I asked him curiously.

Troy shrugged and looked at me. "We do. I don't know. No. and No." He chuckled.

"Well you're no help." I rolled away from him but he pulled me back. He blew raspberries into my neck and I couldn't help but giggle. "I never asked you what you wanted for your birthday." I pulled my self away from him.

"I don't need anything sweetheart." I laid on my stomach, kicking my feet up behind me. He laid against his pillow, watching me.

I rolled my eyes. "I know, but what do you want?" I emphasized the last word in the sentence.

"I have everything I could ever want right here." He ran his fingers down my cheek.

"Stop being corny and tell me what you really want, come on. Anything." I rolled over into him. I poked his stomach. "Do you want a puppy? Do you want a cupcake? Do you want a blow job? What? Give me something to work with?"

He started laughing at the last offer. "A BJ sounds nice." I narrowed my eyes at him. "I'm joking baby." Troy wrapped his arms around me. "When I was 8 I wanted a dog so bad. My grandma bought me a stuffed German Shepard. But I think my parents would kill me if you got me a dog."

I shook my head. "No, they wouldn't they love you too much. What kind of dogs do you like?" I placed my head on his chest.

"I wanted a pug but my mom thinks their ugly. I wanted a Jack Russell but they're too hyper. I haven't really thought about it since I was like 12." Troy shrugged and tickled my stomach a little bit. "Don't you dare think about getting me a dog though, unless you want to keep it at your house unless you can convince my parents otherwise."

I giggled. "We'll see what happens baby." I kissed his lips gently. "I love you Troy."

"I love you Gabriella." He kissed me all over my face.

I pushed him away and cuddled next to him. "My name only sounds beautiful when you say it."

"Gabriella." He said softly against my ear. "is a beautiful name for a beautiful lady."

I felt my cheeks blush. "Oh you stop." I buried my face in his chest and smiled.

We kept getting closer everyday we spent together. It was getting harder and harder to think about leaving for school. I didn't want to leave him. I wanted to pack him up in my suitcase with me and keep him forever. I didn't know what we were going to do when the time came. I didn't want to think about it.

"Gabs." Troy shook me. "Gabi? Are you sleeping?"

"What?" I looked up at him. "I just spaced out. How long has it been?"

Troy laughed. "About five minutes. What were you thinking about?"

I shrugged. "About you."

"What about me?" He stretched out.

"About how much I don't want to leave you when I go back to LA." I put my chin on his chest and sat up. "But we don't have to talk about it now, I want to go fishing." I smiled at him and put some clothes on.

"If you say so Gab." He shrugged and got dressed as well.

I walked out of the tent and over to the boat. I got in and looked back at Troy who was walking over to me. "You know I thought it was unlucky to have a boat with no name. Wasn't that in Forrest Gump?"

Troy laughed and got in the boat. "I supposed we'll have to name it then."

"It would be a girl name." I watched him untie the boat and start rowing. "Like something pretty."

"The most beautiful name I know is Gabriella." He said rowing out into the middle of the lake.

I rolled my eyes. "No, like Harmony or Selina." I rubbed my leg along his slowly. "Something pretty like that."

"I'll think about it." He looked out towards the other side of the lake. I leaned over and kissed his lips slowly. "You're getting comfortable now. The first time you were in here you thought you were going to throw off the equilibrium." He laughed.

I giggled. "Don't make fun of me Troy Maxwell." I started rocking the boat. "Has this ever tipped over?"

He held my hips steady. "Not the equilibrium." Troy joked. "No, I have never tipped over the boat and I don't plan to sweetheart."

I sat back down and he stopped rowing. "Good, because if it ever tipped over and I was in it then I would never step foot in this boat again."

"Sure, sweetheart." He picked up a fishing pole and handed me the other. He set out his line and placed it in the holder. I cast mine the other way and sat at the bottom of the boat.

I looked up at him. "When was the first time you've ever gone fishing?"

"oh.. Boy." He let out a breath of air causing his shaggy hair to fly up. "Probably when I was 5, after Emma passed. Mom went to Florida to see my grandma and grandpa. Dad and I wanted to keep my mind off of what happened. I asked dad a lot of questions he couldn't answer."

I leaned my head against his leg and listened to him talk. He wasn't a talker like I was but when he did talk it surely surprised you. There was always some kind of emotion behind it. It was one of the things I loved most about him. He looked down at me. I smiled at him. "My first time was with you of course."

"Of course, you have the best fishing instructor in New Mexico." He slid down next to me and kissed my forehead.

We stayed out on the lake for a little bit and hung out. We didn't catch anything but that was fine with us. We rowed back in and we ate some dinner and we laid down in the tent. We were tired and I was excited for Troy's birthday tomorrow. I didn't get him a gift yet, I was waiting until we got back to civilization.

I changed into some sweats and curled up under the blankets. It was unusually cold tonight, I was glad Troy was here to keep me warm. He was looking at his phone. I watched him, studying his face. I didn't want to forget anything about this summer. "Why are you staring at me?"

I snapped out of my thoughts and noticed he was staring back at me. "hm?"

"Why are you staring at me Montez?" He put his phone down and climbed in the blankets next to me.

I shrugged. "Because I can. Do you have a problem with that?" I raised my eyebrows.

"You've been spacing out all day. Are you going to tell me what is on your mind or do I have to tickle it out of you?" He moved the little stand of hair out of my face.

"First of all you are not tickling me. Secondly, I've only spaced out like twice. And lastly, I am just thinking about when I have to leave and how much it's going to suck." His face softened and he pulled me closer to him. I leaned against him.

"We have 6 more weeks then we can think about how much it's going to suck." Troy squished my cheeks together making a fishy face. "Got it?"

I nodded. "Got it." I mumbled but it just sounded like gibberish. He chuckled and kissed my lips before releasing my cheeks. "I figured out what I was going to get you for your birthday." I smiled at him.

"What is it?" He put his hands on my waist.

I shook my head. "It's a surprise. I am not going to tell you."

He smiled. "Well when am I going to get it Montez?" He put his hands under my shirt.

"Well it's more than one present so you will continually get presents throughout the weekend." I smiled at him sweetly. I put my finger on his chest. "You will just have to be patient."

Troy sighed and kissed the side of my mouth. "That's fine, I guess."

I saw my phone light up. I pulled away from him and looked at the time. It was 11:48. Only 12 more minutes until Troy's birthday. I put it back and put my hands on his butt. "You seriously have the nicest guy butt ever." I gave him a little squeeze.

"Girls really look at guy butts? I thought they just looked at upper body and penis, when the time came." Troy questioned.

"Well I look at guy butts. You're is the nicest by a landslide." I looked up at him. "But I guess all girls are different. I love your butt but I would eat anything off your abs." He raised his eyebrows at me. "Seriously though, You have a great body. Athletic and sexy. Your Biceps." I shuddered. "You don't know what you do to me."

He smiled at me. "Well I'm flattered." I winked at him, rubbing my hands against his abs. "You have a great body too. You're not a popsicle stick. You are very healthy. Your thigh muscles are incredible. You have the most perfect boobs. Your butt is tight and firm." I giggled quietly. "Your face is gorgeous but your heart is the most beautiful part of you."

I smiled up at him. "You're making me sound like a horny teenage girl."

He chuckled. "You are a horny teenage girl."

I turned my back to him and looked at my phone. Five more minutes. "You are a horny teenage boy." I turned back to him.

"Why are you looking at your phone like that? Somebody more important talking to you?" He smirked at me. I knew he was joking.

"Oh yeah. This hot guy I met the other day. He keeps sending me pictures of his dick." I joked. He pulled me against him and kissed my forehead. "You should sing to me baby."

"Hm, What song haven't I sang to you?" I watched him as he looked up at the roof of the tent. I shrugged to myself.

"I've never had no one, that I could count on.  
I've been let down so many times,  
I was tired of hurtin', so tired of searchin'  
Till you walked in to my life."

He turned to me and wrapped his arms around me. I felt his chest shake as he sung. He sang was sweet and slow.

"It was a feelin' I've never known  
For the first time, I didn't feel alone.  
You're more than a lover.  
There can never be another to make me feel the way you do.  
Oh, we just get closer.  
I fall in love all over every time I look at you.  
I don't know where I'd be without you here with me.  
Life with you makes perfect sense.  
You're my best friend."

I smiled up at him and kissed his lips firmly. He laid back and continued singing.

"You stand by me, you believe in me like nobody ever has.  
When my world goes crazy you're right there to save me.  
You make me see how much I have.  
I still tremble when we touch.  
Oh the look in your eyes we make love.  
You're more than a lover.  
There can never be another to make me feel the way you do.  
Oh, we just get closer.  
I fall in love all over every time I look at you.  
I don't know where I'd be without you here with me.  
Life with you makes perfect sense.  
You're my best friend."

He stopped singing and looked over at me. There were tears brimming in my eyes. He leaned his forehead against mine and kissed my lips slowly. I blinked a couple times to make them go away. I connected my lips with his and played with the back of his hair. I pulled away slowly. "You're perfect. Happy Birthday Troy. I love you so much."

He opened his blue eyes and smiled at me. "This birthday is the best one yet. I love you so much more." I kissed his lips once again and cuddled up to him. I wrapped my arms around him tighter, tangling my legs in between his. I let out a content sigh. Nothing in that moment could have brought me down.

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	20. Modification

**Hey guys! I just wanted to let y'all know i'm taking a slight pause for the weekend. At the start of the next week i have school again so i think i'll be done with the mini series i am working on then. The week after i might resume, i have to see how far i've gotten. This chapter has some sexy time in the beginning so just a fair warning. **

**Have i told you guys that you're all freaking awesome lately? I haven't? well i should. You guys rock. I thank all of my loyal followers. I don't even know how many i have but whoever gives my stories a chance are awesome in my book. Again, thank you guys so much for all the kindness. You are awesome. :)**

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**Gabriella's POV**

I woke up and looked over at the time. It was a little after nine. I changed into some lingerie I bought and sat on Troy's back. I rubbed his shirtless back slowly, massaging his shoulders. I heard him groan from underneath me. I got off of him silently and he rolled onto his back with his eyes still closed. He mumbled something before becoming silent again.

I giggled to myself quietly and crawled on top of him again. I left open mouth kisses along his neck slowly. "Troy." I sang quietly into his ear. I kissed down to his Adam's apple . I sat up as he stirred again.

"Gabi." He groaned. "What in the hell ar-" He started but stopped when he opened his eyes. I smirked at him. "-are you doing?" His voice cracked a bit.

I shrugged. "Waking up my birthday boy." I ran my hands up and down his chest slowly. "Is he awake yet?" I knew he was awake by his morning wood against my inner thigh. "A very happy birthday boy." I muttered.

"How am I not supposed to be when you look like that?" Troy asked breathlessly. His eyes were all over my body.

I leaned over and put my forearms on his chest. His eyes shifted down to my boobs. "When I look like what?" I tilted my head, smiling. He was going crazy and I loved it.

"You know my favorite color is red, but I like black a whole lot better on you." He put his hands on my waist laying me on top of him.

I smiled at him then pulled away from him and sat up again. "What if I wore red?" I put my fingers on the waist band of his shorts and pulled them off. "Would you like red better?" I smirked.

He licked his lips and looked down at me. "You could wear nothing too. That would be fine." He watched me pull down his boxers slowly. I clasped my hand around him, sitting against his thighs. He let out a deep groan.

"Tell me what you want birthday boy." I leaned down and kissed above his belly button. I ran my tongue along his abs slowly. "What do you want?" I asked him again.

"I want you to come here." He pulled me up to him. I kissed his lips firmly. He wrapped his arms around me to unhook my bra. He took off my bra and cupped my breasts. I don't think he would tell me to do something dirty. I put my hands in his hair and pushed my tongue against his. He pulled away from my lips and put his against my ear. "Let me show you what I want." He whispered huskily causing a chill to run down my spine.

"Show me what you want." I repeated breathlessly. He grabbed my hands and put them against my lacy boy shorts. I smirked and stood up. I turned around and bent over, pulling down my panties. I felt his hands kneading my ass. I giggled quietly.

Troy turned me around to face him. He lifted my leg over his shoulder and brushed his tongue along my clit. I grabbed his hair because I had to grab something. He worked his tongue around me, finding all the spots that made my legs shake. I moaned loudly as he inserted two fingers. "Does that feel good baby?" He asked quietly, his lips rumbled against my core.

"Fuck yes." He pushed his fingers in and out more quickly. My knee buckled but he held me up. "God Troy." I said breathlessly. I pulled myself away from him. He groaned in protest. "It's your birthday, today is all about you." I pushed him down.

"I thought you said show you what I want?" He asked, as I crawled on top of him.

I smiled at him. "I changed my mind, let me do the work." I rolled off him and crawled on my knees looking through his things. I felt his finger enter me. He added another before he curled his fingers, rubbing against my spot. My arms gave out and I leaned down against his things. "oh, right there." I found his box of condoms and crushed the ripped box in my hand as the wave of pleasure came over me. I released against his fingers. My legs trembled. He pulled his fingers out and I crawled back over to him. "Look what you made me do."

I showed his the crushed box and he just laughed. "That's not the only thing I made you do." He put a finger in his mouth. I smirked at him and opened the box and pulled out the condoms, ripping one off the column. I threw them next to us before I got back on top of him. I opened the little package and rolled the condom on him. He tried to roll me over but I pushed him back.

"Let me." I said simply as I slowly eased him into me. He put his hands on my waist as I started moving myself up and down on him. I moved my hips in circles against him. "Fuck baby." I moaned quietly, picking up my pace. He mouth connected with my chest, his tongue worked wonders against my nipple, licking and sucking. I bounced on him, pushing him back down. I got off him then turned around. I eased him into me again.

Troy sat up and pulled me against him. He sucked on the back of my neck and fondled my chest with one hand. I pulled his other hand to my lips and sucked on his pointer finger slowly. I ran my tongue along the nerve endings. "Mmm… Gab." He moaned against my neck. I released his finger and he rubbed my clit slowly. He expertly teased my bundle of nerves. He leaned me on all four of my limbs before getting on his knees with one quick motion. He grasped my hips and plunged deep into me.

"Troy!" I screamed before leaning my head down biting my arm. He continued to pull my hips against him. He was hitting all the right places with that angle. "God.. Fuck… shit.. Harder." I cursed before laying my head back down. He obeyed and thrusted into me harder. I was getting close and so was he.

"Fuck" He cursed repeatedly under his breath. I grabbed my pillow and put my face in it. My toes started curling and I screamed into the pillow as we climaxed together. My knees ached and my thighs burned but it was so so worth it.

I fell to the ground and looked over at Troy. He was stuffing the used condom in a half empty water bottle. I laughed quietly. "What are you doing?" I asked him curiously.

Troy's head turned over to me quickly. He chuckled. "I don't know where else to put it." He closed the cap and laid down next to me. He ran his fingers down my bare back. I was naked and exposed but I didn't feel like moving either. We laid there quietly for a while, I finally got my strength back. I looked up at Troy, he was laying with his eyes closed. I turned my body on my stomach and closed my mouth over his half flaccid penis. "God, you are insatiable aren't you?" His eyes shot open, looking down at me.

I rolled my eyes and stroked him with the palms of my hands. My tongue circled around the head of him before running along the shaft. I fondled his balls with one hand and stroked with the other. Troy let out a groan of pleasure. Once he was completely hard again, I wrapped both hands around him, twisting and stroking quickly. Troy cursed under his breath. I reconnected his organ to my mouth, taking him as far as my mouth would allow. After repeating this process a couple times he released in the back of my throat. I swallowed the salty liquid with ease and released him with a slight popping sound. "Happy Birthday Baby." I leaned down and gave him a kiss before putting my bathing suit on and walking out of the tent.

I made myself some breakfast and laid out of the dock. I closed my eyes letting the vitamin D soak in my body. I heard Troy rummaging around through the ice chest. I felt freezing drips on my stomach and saw Troy sit down next to me, opening a bottle of water. "Is that bathing suit new?" He asked me, putting bread in his mouth.

I looked up at him and nodded. "Yeah, I bought it at Victoria's Secret along with your morning present." He smiled at me. "I thought it was cute and it makes my boobs look nice. I thought you might appreciate that."

Troy chuckled and nodded. "I do appreciate it."

I smiled at him. "I'm glad. What are we doing today birthday boy?"

He shrugged. "Hanging out, There is not much to do."

"We can go running." I offered. He stared at me blankly. "What? It was just a suggestion"

"How can you run after this morning? I could barely move." I giggled and took a sip of his water. "Only you would want to run. Besides in like an hour or two it's going to be hot as hell and I'm going to be in that cold water."

I nodded. "That makes sense." I handed him back his water. "I have way too much energy. I'm like a five year old. It's already hot. I'm sweaty and I'm not even moving. I'm going to get skin cancer out here. I would put sunscreen on but it's going to be hot cause it's been sitting on the boat all morning."

"This will cool you down." I looked up at him confused and he poured the rest of his water on me causing me to squeal. "Feel better?" He smiled at me.

"Yes, I do actually." I kissed his lips gently. 'Thanks honey."

"Your welcome beautiful." He finished his breakfast and eased himself into the water. I watched him swim around for a minute. His back muscles are so sexy. He went under the water. I got up and got into the water as well.

We swam around in the lake for a while, distracting ourselves from the heat. His birthday went by quickly. We changed into normal clothes when it finally cooled down. We sat in the back of his truck and he was replying to all of his happy birthday texts and calls. I was looking up, mesmerized with the sky. I looked up at the stars and the blinking satellites. One could only imagine what they actually looked like up close.

"Alright mom, We'll be back around three or four tomorrow." Troy spoke to his mom next to me. I looked up at him. "Alright, I'll tell her. I love you too. She loves you too mom." A small smile crept on my face. "Thank you, bye."

"What did your mom say?" I asked him as he put down the phone.

"She just asked when we were getting back. She's making sure that you know you're invited to dinner. She loves you and she wished me a happy birthday." I giggled. "I'm telling you, she is going to kidnap you one day."

I hugged him tightly. "I really don't mind, that would mean I would get to be with you everyday." I smiled up at him. "You would get so annoyed with me."

He shook his head. "I could never."

I giggled quietly. 'You say that now." He pulled me against him, attacking my neck with kisses. "Did you have a good birthday baby?"

Troy nodded his head, kissing the side of my head. "Best birthday ever. You've made it perfect sweetheart"

"You deserve the absolute best birthday ever. I'm glad I could make it happen. I love you Troy." I kissed his lips. "I really do."

He nodded. "I love you too Gab."

* * *

We went to sleep and got up the next morning. We just went swimming and fishing for the morning. We started packing up before it got too hot. We were on the road ahead schedule. We got to Troy's house a little while later. I jumped into the shower first. I got changed into something nice then sat on the couch next to Troy's Mom.

"Hey Gabi, how was camping?" She wrapped her arms around me tightly.

"It was so fun. We didn't catch any fish this time though." I frowned. "I guess I wasn't lucky this time."

She laughed. "You would be the only girl upset that she didn't catch a fish. My boy is turning you into a hick now."

"Well what can I say?" I said in my best country twang. We erupted with giggles and Mr. Bolton came from the kitchen, looking at us, very confused.

"What's going on in here?" He asked suspiciously.

"Wouldn't you like to know, Jack?" She smiled at me and we turned our attention back to the TV.

"Women." He mumbled, shaking his head.

Troy finally came out of his room and sat on the couch next to us. "How are my two favorite women?" He asked putting his arm around me.

"We are wonderful." I answered, leaning against him. "What are we having for dinner?" I asked Lucy.

"The little restaurant across town, I don't even know what the name of it is. Jack could tell you." She got up. "speaking of Jack. YOU BETTER NOT BE EATING THOSE COOKIES JACK ALLEN BOLTON." Lucy yelled into the kitchen, walking away from us.

"I love your mom." I said, looking over at Troy. "I wish I was half as happy as them when I get married. They've been through so much and they're still so strong."

Troy nodded in agreement. "Me too. I guess no matter what the age. When you find the one, you just know you're bound to be happy for the rest of your life."

I leaned my head against Troy's chest. We watched TV a little longer before we went out for dinner. The restaurant was beautiful. Everything that the waiters brought by was good. I loved PB and J but you can only eat so much of it in one weekend. I looked around the restaurant and my face dropped. Mom. She was sitting at a table with a man. She was in my direct line of vision. I held up my menu. "Shit." I said quietly.

Troy looked over at me, confused. "You alright?" He whispered, looking at me.

"My mother is here." I hissed. She is right there. I pointed to the menu directly in front of me and he looked up.

"She saw me." Troy said. "She's coming over, just put your menu down."

I put the menu down to see that indeed she was coming over here. She looked at me with raised eyebrows. "Fuck my life." I mumbled under my breath.

"Hello, Lucille, Jack, Troy. Can I borrow Gabriella for a second?" Mom asked.

Lucy and Jack looked up at her, surprised. "of course, Kat." Lucy said looking over at me.

"I'm sorry. I'll be right back." I said excusing myself. "Pray for me." I whispered to Troy as I got up. I followed my mom out the restaurant "Hey, mom." I said in my most cavalier voice.

"HI Gabriella. Were you planning on calling me to tell me where you were all weekend? Or would you think I was too stupid to notice that my daughter was gone without a note or anything?" She said in her calm-but-you-know-I'm-pissed-off voice.

I shrugged. "You could've called me. But you didn't. I was surprised. What your boyfriend over there was keeping you busy? That's fine with me. I'm glad you found somebody."

She scoffed at me. "He is not my boyfriend and if he was then that would be none of your business. He works right under your grandfather and we were discussing business. You could have told me at least where you were."

"I was camping." I said shortly. This conversation was pointless. "What kind of business stuff are you talking about with that man? You're the owner, you make the decisions with papa. Not with him." Then it hit me. "You are not going to sign my grandfathers company over to him! Mom, I swear to god."

"Stop being so dramatic Gabriella." She rolled her eyes. "I'm not. We're just discussing some changes."

"You better be, because if you ever sell Papa's business to anybody then I will never talk to you again. Look it's my boyfriends birthday and I'm having a nice dinner with his parents so can I go now? This is incredibly rude." I didn't even give her a chance to respond. I just walked away. I walked back to the table and sat down.

"Everything alright sweetheart?" Troy asked me as I scooted my chair in. I nodded, silently.

The rest of the dinner was uneventful. We ate nicely and Troy took me back to his house. We hung out for a little while before he took me back home. I gave him a kiss goodnight and walked upstairs and into my room. I changed into pajamas and Mom came walking in.

"Gabriella, we need to talk." She sat down on my bed.

"Alright. About what?" I asked, sitting on my bed looking up at her.

Mom pulled her hair to one side and played with it as she spoke. "I don't think you should hang out with Troy anymore. I don't think he is good for you. But I know this is just a summer fling and you will come back to your senses when you get back to Los Angeles." I blinked at her. "We are moving up your departure date from the 18th to the 8th. As of right now you're not going to see him anymore. You are going to start and finish your driving school. You will get picked up here then get dropped off at Albuquerque Rocks."

"What?" I hissed.

"I've talked to your advisor at UCLA and he sent you over some college materials that you will familiarize yourself with. You will have no male visitors at my house. Taylor and Sharpay and your girl friends can come over and you can go to theirs, if and when I talk to their parents. Since you weren't responding well to my previous rules I've decided to buckle down. They're will be no discussion. If I catch you breaking any of these rules. You will be on the first flight back to your father. Do you understand?" I didn't sat anything. I was too stunned to do anything. "Good. Goodnight Gabriella." She got up and walked out the door.

What the hell am I supposed to do now?

* * *

**Don't forget to review :)**


	21. Adaption

**Troy's POV**

I parked my truck in my drive way and went inside my house. My birthday dinner was anything but boring. I took a shower and changed. I was 19 now. I didn't feel any different, I felt the same. I graduated from high school, I am going to college in the fall. I got to play basketball for two more years. Chad was going to Kentucky, Taylor was going to Yale, Ryan and Sharpay were moving to the East Coast as well. Thankfully, Zeke and Jason were staying here so I would have someone to hangout with. I was happy with who I am and where I was. Life was good.

I laid down on my bed. Once I closed my eyes my phone started ringing. I reached over and looked at the called ID. "Hey sweetheart." I said quietly.

She sniffed. _"Hey, Troy."_ She sounded like she was crying.

"Gabi, are you alright?" I asked quietly. I was a little freaked out. I hated when girls cried, especially the ones I cared about. She didn't answer. "Baby, are you still there?"

_"Yeah, yeah. Sorry. I… Can you come pick me up? We need to talk."_ She said quietly. _"You need to go out back. Text me when you're here I'll meet you out back. Don't get out of your truck."_

"Gabi, What is going on?" I let out a breath. I was very confused.

_"I'll tell you when you get here. I'm so sorry."_ Her voice cracked at the end of the line before it went silent.

I looked at my phone in disbelief before slipping on a my shoes. I grabbed my sweatshirt and made it out the house silently. I got in my truck and drove the back way to Gabi's house. I was so confused. I have no idea what is going on. I pulled up to the back just before her gate. I let her know I was out back and I rubbed my temples.

I heard the squeak of the back gate and I looked up. Gabi was wearing sweats and one of my shirts. She climbed into my truck and put the seatbelt on. I backed out and started driving. She was silent next to me. I was fed up with the silence and I pulled off to the side of the road. I unbuckled and turned to face her.

"My mom decided to buckle down." She took her seatbelt off and leaned toward the door and faced me. She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. "She said that I couldn't hang out with you or have boys at her house. I could hang out with the girls only if she spoke to parents first. I'm starting driving lessons tomorrow. I'll finish at Albuquerque rocks where I will revise the college material she got from my advisor at school. If I break any of her rules I will be on the first plane back to LA."

I ran my hands down my face. "Well, I guess we are going to have a lot of sleepless nights."

She let out a noise was a mix between a sob and a laugh. She laid down across the seat and put her head in my lap. I rubbed her back slowly. "I'm sorry. I bet this is like déjà vu for you. I really didn't want this to happen. God, my mom. I'm not even talking to her. God. I hate her. I really do."

"You don't hate her, she's your mom. You could never hate her. I can't hate her either." She sat up and leaned against me. She looked at me confused.

"If I were you I would hate her even more." She nuzzled her face into my neck.

I smiled and kissed the top of her head. "I don't hate her, She made you. I will be forever thankful to her." I put my head on top of hers. "Your mom made the most beautiful girl in the world."

"Shh…" Gabi shushed me before placing a light kiss on my neck. "I love you."

I nodded. "I love you too sweetheart. We will make it work."

We sat in silence for a little longer. She looked up at me. "Can we go to your house?"

"Sure babe." I turned on my truck and drove over to my house. We got out and walked upstairs. We cuddled in my bed. "What time should I take you back home?" I asked quietly.

"Mom gets up at 6, she'll probably check on me because she's a bitch. I have my first driving lesson at 9:45. I'll probably get dropped off around 12." She sighed. "I'm going to go crazy."

I yawned and pulled her closer to me. "Alright, We have 4 and half hours."

She looked at me confused. "It's almost one."

"I know. I'll drop you off at 5-ish so you can sleep. No buts." I said sternly. She rolled over to face me. She kissed my lips gently. "You're so beautiful."

She gave me a small smile. "You are beautiful too." Gabi leaned over and kissed my chest gently. Gabi fell asleep and I was starting to. I looked over at the clock and I picked her up and walked her out to the truck. I drove her to her back gate. I cut the engine and shook her. "Troy?" She asked, groggy.

"Wake up baby. It's 5. I don't think I can carry you and climb a tree at the same time." She giggled lightly and opened her beautiful chocolate eyes and looked at me. "You should go up and get back to sleep."

I got out of the truck and walked her to the gate. "You better text me when you get home." I nodded and gave her a kiss. "I love you Troy. I'm sorry about all of this."

I put my finger on her lips and kissed her again gently. "Goodnight, Good Morning."

She giggled quietly. "Goodnight, Good Morning." She slipped back in the gate and closed it behind her.

* * *

It's been a week since I've seen Gabi. Her mom definitely had buckled down. She was so exhausted she'd fall asleep on the phone around midnight. My insomnia had unfortunately kicked in and I couldn't sleep. It was bad. I just drove around all night. Tonight, I found myself at a tattoo parlor. I needed to do something to occupy my time.

"Bolton right?" The man said to me as I walked in the shop.

I nodded. "Troy."

"I watched you play basketball at East. I go to all the high school games. I'm alumni. Class of 1997." The man explained. "I'm Jake McFarlane."

"The Jake McFarlane?" I let out a whistle. This guy was a legend at East High. I recently beat his record for most points in a season. "It's an honor to meet you."

"I should say the same to you. You beat my record with half of the season left." He shook my hand. He sat down and offered me a seat. "Sit down son."

"Thank you Mr. McFarlane." I said politely as I took a seat.

"You playing at U of A in fall?" He asked me, handing me a waver.

I shook my head. "ACC for two years, after that? I'm not sure." I looked at each question and filled it out carefully.

"Shit son, If you played half as well as you did this season the NBA should be calling you up soon." He said. "Why are you out and about in a tattoo parlor at 1 in the morning?"

I sighed and handed him back his clipboard. "I can't sleep. You are the only thing open at this time at night. I thought why the hell not get a tattoo. Nothing better to do in Albuquerque. Why do you run a 24-hour Tattoo Parlor?"

Jake McFarlane laughed and looked at me. "I stopped sleeping at night a long time ago, son." He pulled a pad of paper and looked at me. "What are you thinking about getting? I can draw it up for you."

"Just a name. Gabriella." I said, looking at him.

He raised his eyebrows. "Your girl?" I nodded. "Must be something special if you're getting inked."

"She is. I can't even explain it." I smiled at the thought of her. My Gabriella. "Why didn't you go to the NBA?"

"I loved basketball but it wasn't my future. I love to draw, still do. Basketball was fun while it lasted. I went to art school instead, started my own business and ended up here." He held up the paper. "Good?"

I looked at the cursive. It was simple and perfect. "It's great. How would it look right here?" I put my hand on my forearm.

"That's a good spot for a first tattoo or on the outside. But you seem more like a forearm guy. It's more intimate." He analyzed. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

I nodded. "I'm sure." Mr. McFarlane transferred it on another piece of paper. He took a razor and shaved my forearm and sanitized it. He then stuck it on my arm. I took a good look at it. "It's perfect."

"Alright Troy, Ready?" He started the needle. I nodded. I set my arm down and he started the outline. I sat there calmly thinking about everything that happened this past week. I let out a sigh. I missed Gabi, a lot.

I sat there for the next hour, completely spaced out. "Troy." I looked up at Jake. "All done."

I looked down at my arm. Gabriella's beautiful name carved forever in my arm. "It looks great Mr. McFarlane. Really."

"Please Troy, call me Jake." He put lotion on it and wrapped it up. "I'm glad you trusted me to do this. When you make it to the NBA promise me you'll make a commercial for me."

I chuckled. "I don't know about the NBA but if I do you'll be the first commercial I do. I promise. How much do I owe you Jake?" I pulled out my wallet. My parents and grandparents gave me money for my birthday.

"Please Troy. You don't need to pay me. If you ever get bored and can't sleep you can always come by. I'd like to meet your Gabriella too." I looked at him skeptically. He chuckled. "I'm serious Troy. We could play some one on one. Take care of your arm too. It should be healed in a couple weeks."

I got up and hugged him. "Thank you so much Jake. I appreciate it. You will forever be in inspiration to me."

He nodded. "You too son. Go home and get some sleep."

"Will do, thank you again Jake." I walked out of the parlor and out to my truck.

"Troy." I heard, it sounded a whole lot like Gabi. "Troy, Wake up." It was Gabi.

I opened my eyes to see Gabi sitting on my bed next to me. I blinked a couple times, readjusting my vision. "What are you doing here?" I asked. I was tired. I looked over at the time. It was 7 in the morning. I didn't fall asleep until at least 4.

"God, nice to see you too Troy." She scoffed and hit my forearm.

"Ow!" I said loudly, pulling my arm from under the blanket.

Gabi rolled her eyes. "Shut up, it didn't hurt that bad… That is not what I think it is." Gabi said, grabbing my arm. "You did not get a fucking Tattoo Troy Bolton!"

I pulled my arm away from her. "I got it last night. It still hurts." I sat up and stretched my arms out. "you never answered my question."

"Well I haven't seen you in a week and I missed you. Taylor dropped me off here and is picking me up in a half hour cause we are going out. All four of us." Gabi said crossing her legs. "Is that a problem?"

I shook my head. "Why so early?"

"It's not early. It's like seven." She said, She got up and threw some clothes at me. "Go shower."

"Fine." I got up and walked into the bathroom. I took a shower making sure not to get it wet. I put boxers on and unwrapped my tattoo. I looked at it and it didn't look that swollen. I put some lotion on it and walked into my room. Gabi was laying on my bed. "What are you doing?" I tried to scare her but she didn't flinch.

"Ha ha." She laughed sarcastically. "Nice try though. Get dressed."

I got changed into shorts and a t-shirt. I walked over to Gabi and leaned down and kissed her lips. "I missed you." I frowned. "A week is too long."

She sighed. "I know, I'm sorry."

I held my arm out and showed her my tattoo. "This is what I got."

She put her hand over her mouth as she looked at it. She looked up at me. "I don't know whether to slap you or kiss you. Why did you do this?"

"Because I love you." I said simply. "I'm going to show my parents."

"Troy." She said sighing. Gabi wrapped her arms around my waist looked up at me. "You didn't have to prove to me you love me. I know you love me. God… When did you get this?"

"Around one in the morning." She raised her eyebrows at me. "The owner is the a legend at east high. Jake McFarlane. He is an awesome guy. It is open 24-hours."

"Troy!" She practically yelled. "Why the fuck were you getting a tattoo at one in the morning?"

I shrugged. "I couldn't sleep and I was driving around, it was the only thing open." I sat back down on the bed and looked at her. "I only got 3 hours of sleep."

We heard a honk outside and she pulled me back up. I grabbed my things then Gabi dragged me down the stairs. "Hey mom," I said, walking past her. "Hey dad." I said before she dragged me out the door.

We got into the back of Taylor's car. "Look what your stupid best friend did!" Gabi held out my arm and showed my tattoo to Taylor and Chad.

They looked up at me. "That's so sweet!" Taylor said with a smile.

"Thank you Taylor" I smiled back at her.

"You are an idiot!" Chad said, lifting his hand up. I pulled my arm back. I knew he was going to smack me. "And you look like hell. Where the hell have you been all week?"

"Well, I can't sleep at night so I'm asleep all day." I shrugged. "Dude, you know that Jake McFarlane owns the 24-hour tattoo parlor. He did my tattoo, he so awesome."

"No way!" Chad said looking back at me. "That's awesome, but you're still an idiot."

I put my seatbelt on. "Where are we even going?" I put my hand on Gabi's knee. She was being quiet. She put her hand on mine.

"Santa Fe. We are going to hang out there, because Katherine is always lurking around Albuquerque." Taylor said with a roll of her eyes. She started driving.

About a half hour into the ride Gabi leaned over to me and sighed. "I never gave you your last birthday present."

I looked at her confused. "You didn't have to give me any birthday present Gab, you know that."

She nodded. "I know but still. We are going to spend time together tonight and I will have it by then." She looked up at me. "Is that alright?"

"That's fine, just let me know when you want me to pick you up." She turned my face toward her and kissed my lips gently. I kissed her lips back firmly, her fingers ran through my hair. She brushed her tongue against my bottom lip. I met my tongue with hers and she pushed her body against mine.

"No fucking in my car so you better knock it off." Taylor said from the front seat.

We pulled away and started laughing. I looked up to see her eyeing me in the rear view mirror. I pulled her against me tightly. I kissed the top of her head. "Love you." I mumbled into her hair.

"I love you too Bolton." She smiled at me. I closed my eyes and leaned my head back. She drew random shapes on my thigh. I tried to fall back asleep but I couldn't sleep. Before I knew it we stopped the car. Taylor and Chad started getting out. Gabi got off me and unbuckled my seatbelt for me. "Come on Bolton, We're here."

My tired eyes flicked open and I got out of the car. Gabi walked over to me and wrapped her arm around my waist. We walked into the mall together. Chad and Taylor were in front of us. "Where are we going?" I asked Gabi, wrapping my arm around her shoulder.

"Not sure." She bit her bottom lip. "I need to go to Victoria's Secret, oh and coach. And I need some new boots. " She ranted on about all the stores she wanted to go to.

"Why me god?" I asked out loud looking up at the ceiling. She punched me in the gut and I grunted.

"Heard that you ass." She let me go and grabbed my hand. "You are going shopping with me, you are holding my bags and or my purse and you aren't going to complain." She put her hands on either side of my face and turned me toward her. "Do you understand me baby?"

I nodded and Gabi stood on her tip toes planting a kiss on my lips. I sighed. "Where to first sweetheart?" I looked around. Chad and Taylor were nowhere in sight. I kissed her hand gently and she lead my in the direction of Victoria's Secret.

"You can pick out some underwear for me." She whispered against my ear and smiled at me.

I smirked at her and wiggled my eyebrows. "This won't be so bad then." She giggled and dragged me in the store. We walked to the back and she started going through the drawers. I was a little hesitant to pick up a lacy thong. I picked it up then dropped it. "Can't do it. Can't touch it."

Gabi cracked up from next to me. She was watching me the whole time. "The look of your face." She gripped the side of the display and her laugh went silent. I couldn't help but laugh as well. I looked around at all the people staring at us. "Oh god." she finally said, catching her breath. "That was great."

"Can we go, I've suffered enough embarrassment for one store." I said, looking uncomfortably at the rows of women's underwear in front of me. "But if it helps. The red one is nice."

She smiled at me, containing her laughter. She picked up a red thong. "This one?" I nodded shamelessly. "I'll get it then. What else do you like?" Gabi said seductively in my ear.

I rolled my eyes. "They're all the same, they just have different patterns."

She giggled quietly. "Oh, Troy." She walked around to a different table and filed through it. I followed her. "What do you think about these?" She held up some underwear. "These are the ones that like half of my ass hangs out of" She explained.

I bit my bottom lip and nodded. "I like those. Blue is nice."

She smiled and smacked my cheek. "You are so helpful."

"Glad I can be." I said sarcastically. She picked a couple more and went to go pay. I walked to the perfume section and sniffed one, making a face.

"Need any help?" Somebody asked. I looked up and spotted a blonde girl in front of me. I blinked at her. "Do you need any help, with anything?" She asked again.

"Oh, no. I was just browsing. You know, sniffing and whatnot." I said, showing her the bottle I was holding.

She let out a soft giggle and bit her bottom lip. "Very Sexy Touch is my favorite." She said, looking at me, up and down.

My eyes widened. "Excuse me?"

She giggled again. "The fragrance your holding is called Very Sexy Touch." She explained. I felt my cheeks turn red. I turned around and put it back.

"Baby, Ready to go?" Gabriella asked from the other side of me.

"Y- yeah." I nodded. I looked back at the girl. "Thank you, for your help?" I turned back to Gabi and took her bag. I laced my fingers in between hers.

Gabi looked at me and smiled. She giggled at me. "I am embarrassed for you, I had to get you out of there before you embarrassed yourself further or she started dry humping you" I looked at her like she was crazy. "What? She wanted to pounce on you."

"Please, Gabi. The only person I would want to have pounce on me is you sweetheart." I kissed her fingertips gently.

She smiled at me. "I know baby. I would kick any bitches ass if they ever laid their hands on you. Don't worry." I chuckled and smiled down at her, giving her a kiss. She looked up. "Oh, let's go find you something nice to wear." She dragged me off into a store, picking clothes out for me.

After about 5 times around the store, I sighed. "Are you done yet?" She shook her head and I sat down on a near chair. She finally came back and put a couple hangers with my pile. "Done now?"

"Yes, impatient." She rolled her eyes. "Now go change." I got up and started walking away. "Wait, wait, wait." She stopped me. She matched each pair of bottoms to a shirt. "Alright, go on."

I walked into a dressing room and got into the first outfit and I walked out. "number one." I turned around for her. She shook her head in disapproval. I walked back in and changed into outfit two. "number two." She bit her bottom lip and shook her head as a no. I changed into the third one and walked out. "Three."

She smiled at me. "That one is hot." She bit her bottom lip. "Turn around." I did as I was told. "Your butt looks so hot." I rolled my eyes and turned back around. "Alright, go try on number four." She spanked me as I walked away.

I chuckled to myself and tried on the rest of the outfits. We mutually decided on number three. Gabi paid for it, much to my objection and we walked out of the store. It didn't take her long to drag me off to another store.

* * *

**It's BAAACK :) for a short while anyway. I'm going camping for a week. I'm technically leaving tomorrow. So I just wanted to give y'all a little something. I'll try to upload one tomorrow! You guys rock. That is all.**


	22. Let me down easy

**Troy's POV**

Taylor dropped me off around noon at my house. Gabi had to get back home because her crazy mother was looking for her. When I got home I finally managed to fall asleep. I woke up 7 hours later. My arm throbbed. I cleaned it up gently, putting lotion on it. I walked down stairs.

"Good, you're up. Dinner's ready." Mom said, smiling at me.

"Mom. I got a tattoo." I said, sitting down at the table. My head was still fuzzy. I felt like I was in a time warp.

She blinked at me. "You… What?" She looked at me in disbelief.

I showed her my arm. "I got a tattoo." I said.

She looked at my arm and sighed. "Oh.. Troy." She said in her disappointed mom voice. "Troy…"

"Go ahead, so whatever you need to say." I rested my chin on my hand. "Go on."

She frowned. "I don't want you to hurt Troy. I love you so much and I love Gabi like my own daughter. Her mother is a bitch and I know what she's doing to you both and I know it's tearing you apart."

"I'm going to get hurt regardless. I'm not good enough for her mom." I sat back. "But I love her. I will sneak around until she leaves and find my way back to her. I promise you that. I don't want to wonder what might have happened. That will hurt me worse."

Mom wrapped her arms around me and kissed the top of my head. "I love you Troy. I'll be here for you anytime. Even at work. Just call me alright." She looked at me with tears in her eyes. She started crying. "I'm sorry." She walked out of the room.

"Luce?" Dad asked as she pushed passed him. "What happened?"

"I got a tattoo but I don't think that's why she's crying." I said, showing him the tattoo.

Dad shook his head at me. "Troy…" He started. He decided not to finish and walk out after my mom instead. I made a plate for myself and went up to my room. After I finished eating I took my plate downstairs and threw it away. I watched some TV until Gabi called me.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Hey baby." Gabi said on the other end. Just hearing her voice made me smile.

"What's up?" I asked, shifting my position on my bed.

"I have your last present, come pick me up?" She asked.

"Out back?" I started getting up.

"Yep." She started giggling quietly.

I smiled to myself. "Alright, I'll be right there."

"I love you." She said.

"I love you too sweetheart." I said before hanging up. I pulled my shoes on and walked to my truck. I stopped at the gas station on the way to Gabs house. I drove to the back gate of Gabi's house and I text her, letting her know I was there.

Around 5 minutes later she came out of the gate holding wearing a big sweatshirt. She was holding her belly and she opened the door. "Happy birthday Troy." She revealed a English bulldog puppy and put it on the seat.

"You're fucking kidding me." I picked up the puppy and held it to my chest. "You got me a dog?" I asked her in disbelief as she got in the truck. I petted the puppy and held it up, looking at it. "Boy or girl?" I was too lazy to look.

"A girl." She smiled at me. "I wanted you to name her." She scooted over to me and leaned against me.

"You're unbelievable." I kissed the top of the puppy's head. "Bella."

"What?" She asked looking at me.

"I'm going to name her Bella." I smiled at her, petting the puppy. "I love her, thank you baby." I kissed her lips firmly. "I don't think my parents are going to let me keep her."

"They will, I already talked to your dad about it." She said with a confident smile. "There is nothing else to do at Albuquerque Rocks except harass the employees."

I chuckled and handed her back the puppy. "Can you stay or do you need to get back?"

She leaned over and kissed me. "Stay of course." She smiled at me. "Show me what you do when you can't sleep."

I nodded. "Alright. We need to get dog stuff for Bella." I looked at her and smiled. "I can't believe you got me a dog."

She shrugged and kissed the puppies head. "You said that already."

I looked at the time. "I think it's too late to go to the pet store…" My thoughts trailed off.

"I have a little bag of food and a kennel and some puppy pads." Gabi said, playing with the puppy who was biting her sweatshirt. She giggled. "They're at your house already."

"You're amazing." I smiled at her. She leaned over and kissed me. "Well we should take her back to my house then."

Gabi put her seatbelt on and held the puppy to her chest. "Ready when you are handsome." She winked at me.

I put my seatbelt on and drove toward my house. Half way there, Bella climbed into my lap and fell asleep. Gabi smiled over at us. Once we got to my house I picked her up and walked over to Gabi. I wrapped my free arm around her and kissed her lips firmly. "I love you so much." I leaned my forehead against hers. "You have no idea."

She giggled at me and kissed my lips again. "Well you do have my name on your arm so I guess I have an idea." I laced my fingers in between hers and walked into my house. She went towards the garage and I walked up to my room. Gabi came in and put the kennel down next to my bed. "Bella wants to go into the kennel?" She asked in a baby voice to the puppy in my arms. She took her from me and put her in front of it. Bella climbed into it and laid down. "Good girl Bella!" She closed the kennel.

"You could be a veterinarian." I said as she got up.

She made a face and shook her head. "I don't want to be in school forever and I don't think I could put an animal down. I would cry too much."

My arms wrapped around her and pulled her against me. "I missed you so much." She laid her head on my chest. "I was about to break into your room and wake you up just to spend time with you."

Gabi smiled at me. "I missed you too. I can't wait to get my license, the instructor said I am doing fabulous. What should be true because I am a quick learner and driving is fun. I don't know why I was so scared. Maybe because I haven't hit anything yet." She sighed. "I can't wait to drive my car. My mom keeps using it and I'm always like mom, get the fuck out of my car. You have your own and she's like Gabriella it's fine."

I sat back on my bed and watched her talk. I smiled as she continued talking. "Baby?" I took a hold of her hands and smiled. She stopped talking and looked down at me. "Want to drive my truck?"

Her eyes got big and she squealed quietly. "Yes! Yes! Yes!" She jumped on me and left kisses all over my face. She pulled away. "Are you serious?" I chuckled and nodded. "Oh my god!" She leaned down and kissed my lips firmly. "I fucking love you Troy." She connected her lips to mine again.

I smiled into the kiss pulling away slowly. "You ready babe?" She nodded furiously. I got up and we walked down to the car. She jumped around standing next to the drivers side as I locked my front door. I walked over to her. I let out a breath. "You are very lucky because I'm very picky about who drives my truck. Only My dad and I have driven the truck so I'm going to be extra cautious and I hope that you are going to be too. But I trust you."

She smiled and nodded. "I understand. I won't let you down." She held out her hand for the keys. I looked at her before I placed the keys in her palm. I walked over to the passenger side and climbed in. I buckled my seatbelt and gripped the handle "You don't have to hold on to the handle Troy." She turned on the ignition.

"Oh god." I gripped the handle tighter and she smacked my leg. I smiled at her apologetically. "Sorry. I'll be calm." I sat back and let out a breath.

She looked behind her and backed out of my drive way carefully. She drove to the end of my block and stopped at the stop sign. "Where are we going baby?" She glanced at me then turned on to the street.

"I'll tell you when to turn." I said, starting to relax. She was doing pretty well. We drove a little while longer, I was directing her where to turn and what not. She was getting good at driving. "Alright, it's in this shopping center."

"Okay." She turned into the shopping center and looked at the signs. She smirked as she read my mind and stopped in front of the 24 hour tattoo parlor. "Here? Of all places?"

I smiled at her. "I told you somebody wanted to meet you." I got out of the truck. She got out and handed me my keys. "Thank you baby. I'm very impressed. You're good, but not as good as I am."

She rolled her eyes at me. "I've been driving for a week, you've been driving for three years." She pinched my butt. "But thank you. I love your truck. Thank you for letting me drive it"

"This will probably be the first and the last time because my blood pressure went up." She giggled and kissed my lips firmly. "Come here." I lead her into the tattoo parlor. "Hey Jake, I have someone for you to meet."

Jake was sitting at the counter reading the newspaper. His head shot up as he heard my voice. "Hey Troy." He took a look at the girl next to me and smiled. "Gabriella."

I nodded. "Gabi, this is Jake McFarlane. East High legend and tattoo master. Jake, this is the Gabriella"

Gabi went over to him and shook his hand. "Nice to meet you Mr. McFarlane. I almost kicked Troy's ass when I saw his tattoo, but it was sweet so I couldn't."

Jake chuckled. "I like her already Troy. What brings you around here? I just saw you yesterday." He took his seat and Gabi sat on a stool next to the desk.

"You said you wanted to meet Gabi, so I brought her over here. I haven't seen her in a week." I wrapped my arms around her and she leaned against me.

"My mom is a crazy bitch" Gabi explained.

Mr. McFarlane nodded and looked at us. "Been there done that. Mom's hate athletes. When I was at East, Junior year, I was at the top of my game. I was going out with this girl, Anne Thomas. I fell in love but her mom hated me" He shrugged. "Broke up with me right before the big championship. I've never played better."

Gabi looked at him confused. "Weren't you heartbroken? You said you were in love with this girl."

He shrugged and folded up his newspaper. "I thought maybe if I could play better, Maybe I could be able to impress her or her mom. Never happened though, she tore my heart apart." Jake then smiled. "I met up with her when I went to college. We got married five years ago."

"Where is she when you're here?" I asked him.

"She's an artist, her studio's in Santa Fe. I leave here around 6 when my first artist comes in. I pick her up and we sleep for about 6 hours or so, spend the rest of the day together then go to work." He shrugged. "We both don't sleep at night."

"That is so fascinating." Gabi said as she looked at him. "You are the most interesting person I've ever met Mr. McFarlane."

Jake chuckled. "Please call me Jake."

"Seriously!" Gabi began. "This girl breaks your heart, pushes you to be better. You meet her in college, get married and become insomniacs. It's amazing. I am so happy for you Jake. I bet she is an amazing woman." She looked at me. "I hope things work out for us like they did for you. On top of my mom being a bitch and not liking Troy. I'm leaving in a couple weeks for college in California."

"Where are you going?" He asked Gabi. I was watching them converse.

"UCLA. Psychology." Gabi explained to him. "My dad lives in LA so I'll move back in with him."

Jake looked at Gabi confused. "Why the hell did your mom move out here?" I chuckled. That was my thought when she told me as well.

"My Papa lives out here. My mom's Dad. She's taking care of him and running Albuquerque Rocks. Which I don't know why. She has so much on her plate already. I don't understand." Gabi contemplated with herself.

"Your grandfather is Johnny Rocks?" Jake asked, amazed. "He is the coolest guy ever. Local hero. I didn't know he was sick. I'll pray for him."

Gabi giggled quietly. "Troy and you, Jake, are more alike than you will ever understand."

I chuckled and nodded. "I asked her the same thing when I first met her. Her Father is a clothing designer."

Gabi nodded. "John Montez."

"My wife loves him! She thinks he is hot. She swore she saw him here a month ago. I didn't believe her, but I guess I'll have to tell her that I met his daughter." Jake chuckled. "She'll never believe me."

Gabi giggled. "Well tell her to believe it. I want to meet her, she sounds like a wonderful woman." She looked up at me and smiled. She got up. "We should get going. We only have…" She looked at the clock. "5 hours until I have to get home and we have to check on the dog."

"Right? I forgot." I nodded. I looked at Jake. "Gabi got me a dog for my birthday."

"It was so nice to meet you." Gabi gave Jake a hug. "I really want to meet your wife before I leave."

"Of course. It was nice to meet you too Gabriella." He leaned over and whispered something in her ear, causing her to frown. She nodded. "See you later Troy."

"Bye Jake." I waved as we walked out of the parlor. "What did he say to you?" I asked as we got in my truck.

"Let him down easy." She said looking out the window as we drove back to my house. Gabi let the puppy out and set up a puppy pad in the corner. She set the puppy on it. I got changed into something comfortable and laid on my bed.

I watched Gabi as she talked to the puppy. "Bella, be a good girl and go potty." I smiled to myself. Bella, walked over to Gabi and stretched out against her legs. She let out a yawn, making a little noise. "Oh, somebody is tired." She picked up the dog and laid her in my bed and climbed in with us.

"You're so cute." I smiled at Gabi. I looked down at Bella who was making a bed for herself at the foot of the bed. Gabi leaned down and kissed my lips slowly. I parted my lips and she brushed her tongue against mine. Her shirt rode up a little bit, I felt something cold against my stomach. I pulled away from her lips slowly and looked down. I saw a piece of jewelry in her belly button. "You got your belly button pierced?" I yell-whispered.

Gabi smiled innocently. "I know I forgot to tell you something." She bit her lip, laying next to me. She lifted her shirt up and showed me. "Do you like it?"

I turned over and touched it. "Does it hurt?" I looked up at her and she shook her head. I flicked it around a little bit, causing Gabi to giggle. "It's hot."

Gabi laughed quietly. "I'm glad you think so, are you done playing with it now?"

"No." I flicked it again. "Okay, now I'm done."

Gabi shook her head. "You are like a cat." I rolled my eyes and rolled on top of her. I kissed her neck gently. Gabi yawned from under me. I pulled away and looked at her. "Mmm, why'd you stop?" She asked with her eyes closed.

"You're tired, go to sleep." I rolled off her and laid next to her. I kissed the back of her neck as she spooned against me. "I love you, no matter what happens." I whispered quietly into her hair. Gabi mumbled in response. I closed my eyes, laying next to her.

I opened my eyes and looked down at Gabi. I must have fallen asleep for five minutes. I looked over at the clock. "6:05 Fuck" I said loudly, getting up. "Gabi, Gabriella. Wake up." I shook her and she groaned. "It's six o clock! Get Up!" I pulled my shoes on and Bella started barking I picked her up and put her in the kennel.

Gabi got up and scrambled to find her shoes. She slipped them on and we ran downstairs. We jumped in my truck and I sped over to the back of her house. She gave me a quick kiss before running into the gate. I started driving back home. Once I got home I let Bella out of the kennel and she walked over to the puppy pad and went to the bathroom.

"Good Girl Bella." I picked her up and laid her in my bed. I played with her for a little while. Her brown little tail wagged she rolled on her back and I rubbed her belly. "You are so wrinkly." I told the little puppy who rolled back over. My phone started ringing. "Hello?"

"Hey honey." Gabi was on the other end. "Everything is good, mom didn't even check on me until like five minutes ago."

"That's good babe, Bella and I are playing on my bed, she went pee on her puppy pad." I said, laying back.

"That's good. I have to go get ready, but I'll call you later. I love you." She hung up before I got the chance to say anything.

"Well I love you too." I said into no one before putting it down. "Looks like its just me and you again Bella." I picked her up, holding her over my head. I put her back down before closing my eyes and going back to sleep.


	23. The Water's Rough

**I'M BAACKK! I know it's been forever. I got back from my camping trip yesterday and i am back and refreshed and ready to continue. I don't have any more vacations planned so i'll be updating regularly. I won't bore you with my camping trip stories so here is chapter 23 :)**

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**Gabriella's POV**

"Turn left here." Ian, my driving instructor told me. "Remember what I told you about freeways."

I rolled my eyes. He was overly cautious, like Troy had been last night. I couldn't believe he let me drive his truck! It was so big but so easy to maneuver. You would think the opposite because of the way it looks. "When do you think I could be able to go get my license?" I asked Ian, after merging on to the freeway.

"I'm not sure Gabriella, We can go through what the test will present you tomorrow, if I think your ready then we can set you up with an appointment." Ian spoke quietly. He was in his mid thirties, starting to bald on the top of his head. He was a great instructor, mom paid a lot of money for him. "Don't forget to use your blinker Gabriella."

I let out a frustrated sigh. "Can we please go somewhere other than Albuquerque Rocks? I don't want to go there. I'm tired of seeing my mothers face all day. You're lucky you only talked to her for a half hour. She's infuriating. I want to rip my hair out." Ian didn't speak. I continued on the freeway in silence. I got off at the exit for Albuquerque Rocks. I pulled up into the regular parking space. "Thanks anyway Ian, I'll see you tomorrow."

I walked into Albuquerque Rocks and walked into my Papa's office. I sat in his chair and pulled out my books from school. I turned on the security monitors. I set up my books like I was actually studying. I watched the people on screen instead. I couldn't hear them but I watched how they interacted with each other. How they changed when my mother or any other superior walked into the room. It was fascinating.

I looked on the screen to see my mom come towards the office. I shut of the monitors and looked at my books reading the first sentence. "Hey Gabriella, how was driving with Ian?" Mom asked as she closed the door behind her.

"Fine." I said shortly. I glanced at her then back at my book.

"Come on baby, you have to talk to me sometime." She smiled at me. I looked up at her. I studied her face. I thankfully inherited most of my gene's from my Dad. I got his dark hair, tan skin, witty personality. The only thing I got from my mom was her quick metabolism and her nose. "Please?" She begged.

I blinked at her a couple times. "I have nothing to say to you."

"You can't be mad at me forever baby." She smiled as she sat back.

I rose my eyebrows. "Wanna bet?" The smile on her face dropped and I looked down at my books. "I got all this shit to read, so if you don't mind."

Mom let out a frustrated sigh and went into the joining office next to the one I was in. I turned back on the monitors. I heard my moms voice. "Hey John." I heard her say through the thin walls. "I don't know if I'm doing the right thing… I thought this would make us closer but she's just pushing me away… I just want what's best for our daughter! He is not it!… Yes she did seem happier… No it shouldn't be, She's going off to college, she'll find a man there and thank me later… I am not naïve Johnathan… Can you talk to her for me?"

I rolled my eyes and turned off the screens. I got up and walked out of the office. I walked out into the yard, I picked up a granite pebble and ran my fingers along it slowly. "Hey Gabi, Did Troy like the dog?" I turned around to see Mr. Bolton in his work uniform.

I smiled at him. "He loves her. He named her Bella. I don't think he believed me when I said you guys would let him keep her." I giggled quietly. "How are you and Lucy?"

"I'm good, happy to be working as always. Lucy is getting stressed out, especially since Troy's out of high school. I told her to lose the clinic job but she loves it too much. I think she's coming down with something too." Mr. Bolton frowned.

"What kind of soup does she like?" I asked him, playing with the rock in my hand.

"Chicken noodle." Jack smiled. "She's into the classics. I should get her some."

I nodded. "You should, I'm sure she would appreciate it." I turned my head to see my mother coming. "I'll talk to you later Mr. Bolton." Jack took the hint and walked away quickly. I walked in the other direction. I walked around to the front of the building, entering through the back door. I made it back into the office before my mom. The company phone rang. "Albuquerque Rocks, Gabriella Montez speaking."

"Hello Miss Montez, This is Grace Butler from Lakeside Care Home. I'm looking for Katherine Dutch, I couldn't reach her on her cell. It's urgent." My blood froze. Something was wrong.

"I'll get her, We'll be on our way soon." I hung up then ran to the yard to find my mom. I found her, she was talking to the man she was at dinner with when I went out with Troy for his birthday. "Mom." I said breathlessly.

"Gabriella, I'm in the middle of something." She went to turn back to the man.

"Mom! There's something wrong with Papa. The home called. They couldn't get a hold of you. We have to go. NOW!" I yelled. "Come on or I'm leaving without you." The adrenaline was rushing through me. I ran back to the office, collecting my purse. Mom was hot on my heels, gathering her things.

We jumped in the car and Mom sped over to the care home. We rushed out to see Papa getting rushed into the ambulance. "Oh my god' My mom said quietly from next to me. She ran over to the EMTs. "This is my father. Where are you taking him?"

"Albuquerque County Hospital, ma'am. He can have one accompany him to the hospital." The EMT said, looking at my mom.

"Go mom, I'll follow." She gave me a look. "I'll be right behind you, I'll be safe I promise."

"Fine." She tossed me the keys and climbed in the ambulance.

I ran back to my moms car and plugged my phone in. I could feel the tears coming already. I turned on the car when the ambulance started out of the driveway. I flicked through my I phone and called Troy. _"Hello…Gabi?"_ Troy asked.

"Hey Troy." I followed them out of the parking lot. "I didn't wake you did I?" I asked biting my quivering bottom lip.

_"No you didn't sweetheart, what's the matter?"_ He asked quietly. _"Bella, don't bite daddy's foot! Ow!"_ He said away from the phone.

"My Grandpa is getting taken to the hospital. I don't know what's wrong with him. I'm so scared Troy." I admitted quietly, letting the tears run down my cheek. I followed the ambulance closely. "Mom is in the ambulance and I am following them. I don't even know what's going on." I sobbed quietly.

_"Gabi it will be alright. Your grandpa is getting the help he needs. You will be at the hospital soon. I wish I could be there for you. You have to be strong for your papa and your mom okay?"_ He said quietly. I wiped the tears away from my face as we pulled into the emergency lot. I found a parking space and sat in the car.

"I know I have to be, but it's so hard. I don't know if I can." I leaned my head against the steering wheel. "I have to go inside but I'll let you know what's going on."

Troy sighed quietly. _"Alright, if you need me just call me, I'll be over there in a heart beat. I love you Gabi. I hope your papa is alright."_

"Me too, I love you too. Thank you Troy." I said quietly.

_"Anytime baby."_ He said quietly before I hung up the phone. I pulled it off the wire and grabbed my purse. I wiped my face and locked the car.

I made my way into the hospital and I found my mom. She was crying, sitting in a chair. "Hey mom, how is papa?" I asked quietly.

"He had a heart attack this morning." Mom said quietly. "His blood pressure is really high as well." She let out a quiet sob. "They say he doesn't have much time left."

"Oh mom." I wrapped my arms around her tightly. She put her face in my chest and I ran my fingers through her light brown hair. She took a minute to compose herself. She pulled away from me and sat back. "I'm going to call dad and let him know what's going on." She nodded, without looking at me.

I walked outside and sat on a bench outside the hospital. I pressed call into my phone, putting it up to my ear. _"Hey, how's my favorite girl?"_ Dad said from the other side of the line. He sounded so happy.

"Not good Daddy." I said quietly.

He sighed. _"What's the matter honey?"_

"Papa had a heart attack this morning… They said he doesn't have much time left." Those words made my chest ache. I wish Troy was here. I let out shaky breath.

_"Oh baby, I'm so sorry. He is a strong man."_ He said quietly. _"How is your mom doing?"_

I wiped the tear that rolled down my cheek. "She cried for a good two minutes before she put up an act. I know it's killing her."

_"You know your mom acts like nothing hurts her. It killed me to try to break through her walls. I'm glad you got two minutes of your mom back. I haven't seen the woman I fell in love with since you were 8. Take care of your mom and papa. Cut her some slack. She loves you. I'm sorry about the whole Troy thing. I know how much he means to you, she is just doing what she thinks is best."_ Dad was talking quickly now. _"Baby I have to go, I love you. Bye."_ He hung up.

"What is it with people hanging up on me?" I let out a frustrated sigh, talking to myself. I shoved my phone back into my pocket and walked inside.

A half hour later Papa finally got moved into a room, where he was closely monitored. He was heavily drugged and half coherent. Mom was getting phone calls all day. I sat quietly by papas bed, moving out of the way when necessary. Visiting hours were over at 8 and we left promptly. Mom tried to stop for food but I wasn't hungry.

We got back to the house and mom gave me a tight hug after I closed the door. "I love you Gabi, I'm going to bed. Goodnight." She placed a kiss on my forehead before walking upstairs. I watched her walk up the stairs. The last time she called me something other than Gabriella, or a pet name like baby was when I was like 8. Weird. Same age daddy was talking about.

I walked up the stairs and laid in my bed. I looked at my ceiling. I tried to recall everything that happened when I was eight. Travis and I were playing catch and he broke my nose with a baseball. Thank god it healed up nicely. Papa came that year to visit. We lived on the beach for two weeks. It was perfect. I couldn't think of anything else at the moment. I called Troy.

_"Hey sweetheart, how are you feeling?"_ Troy answered.

I shrugged, not like he could see. "I'm alright. I really want to see you tonight. I have to get away from this." I said quietly.

_"Where do you have in mind?"_ He asked me.

"I don't care. Somewhere. Pick me up at 11. That way I'll know my mom is asleep." I said quietly. "Is that okay?"

_"That's fine sweetheart."_ He agreed.

"My mom called me Gabi today." I said.

He chuckled quietly. _"That's your name isn't it?"_

A small smile crept on my face, I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, but she calls me Gabriella, not Gabi… It was weird."

_"What am I going to do with you Gabs?"_ He sighed.

"I'm not that bad, am I?" I bit my bottom lip.

_"Of course not babe. You're perfect."_ I smiled to myself. _"I'm going to take a shower, I smell like… well you don't want to know what I smell like."_

I giggled quietly. "Alright honey, think about me."

_"Always do."_ He said huskily. I bit my bottom lip again. _"I love you."_

"I love you too" I smiled. I made a kissy noise into the phone. "Muah!"

He chuckled. _"Bye Gab."_

"Wait. I don't get a kissy back?" I giggled quietly. I could only imagine him rolling his eyes.

_"Muah"_ He made a kissy sound into the phone. _"Happy?"_

"Yes, I'll see you soon, bye baby." I said quietly.

_"Bye sweetheart."_ He hung up the phone and I laid my phone on my chest.

I decided I would bathe as well since I smelled like hand sanitizer. I ran a warm bath. This would be the first time since I moved her I would use the bathtub. I stripped off my clothes and got in the warm water. God it has been a long day. I turned off the water since it was full enough. I found the neck pillow my mom bought me after I moved. I blew it up and stuck it to the side of the tub. I leaned my head against it.

"Seems like there's always someone who disapproves,  
They'll judge it like they know about me and you.  
And the verdict comes from those with nothing else to do  
The jury's out but my choice is you.  
So don't you worry your pretty little mind  
People throw rocks at things that shine  
And life makes love look hard.  
The stakes are high, the water's rough.  
But this love is ours."

I sang to myself quietly. That song was too appropriate for my life. I sat there a little while longer and pulled the plug. I quickly transferred into the shower and scrubbed my skin. I got out and changed into something comfortable and walked out of my room. I walked passed my moms room, her lights were out and I could hear her softly snoring. I walked down the stair and got a bottle of water.

I walked into a spare room with the rest of our boxed stuff in it. I grabbed one with my name on it and sat down. I opened the box and pulled out the picture of me, mom, and dad. I was six, mom was holding me and dad was on the other side with his arms wrapped around us. I smiled at the picture before putting it down. I picked up my baby book and opened it.

"October 14, my little miracle was born. Gabriella Katherine Montez." I read aloud. I looked at the picture of me, screaming my head off in the arms of my mom. "Little miracle, yeah right." I giggle quietly before looking at the bottom picture. I was sleeping peacefully on my dad's chest. He was asleep as well. I turned the page, I looked at all the pictures of me when I was a baby. Some where I was naked, some with food all over my face.

I got to my first birthday. I had a mean face on, sitting behind my cake. Dad and his ridiculous mustache standing next to me, mom on the other side. They were both smiling big. I wish I could go back to those days, when my parents looked so in love it almost made you sick. I guess they both stayed miserable with each other for me, until I was old enough to understand. I closed the book at that page and put it back in the box. I picked up the picture when I was six and brought it to my room. I put the frame up on the wall.

My phone vibrated from the bed and I rushed over and answered. "Hello?"

_"Hey babe, I'm a little early, is that alright?"_ Troy asked.

"Yeah, that's fine. I'll be out in a minute, love you." We hung up and I pulled my shoes on. I grabbed my phone and my credit card and climbed down the tree that hung over my balcony. I dashed towards the bush that covered the secret gate.

I opened just enough to slip through and closed it carefully. I walked over to Troy's truck and climbed in. "Hello beautiful." Troy smiled at me before pulling me over to him.

"Hi handsome." I said quietly as he kissed my forehead gently.

He buried his face into my neck. "You smell like vanilla"

I giggled quietly and pulled away from him. I kissed his lips gently. "You smell like.. oranges?"

He chuckled. "My mom bought this tangerine body soap from some girly store and it's the only one in my bathroom."

I smiled. "Sure honey." I said sarcastically. "It's okay to admit you like girly soap."

He rolled his eyes at me. "I love my tangerine girly soap." he replied sarcastically.

"I like it, it smells good. You smell good enough to eat." I placed a gentle kiss on his lips.

"You seem to be in a better mood." He noticed, I nodded.

"I took a bath and went through some old stuff, had a lot of thinking time." I said quietly. I sat back and put my seatbelt on. "Where are we going?"

"We're going crazy." He replied as he started the truck. He started driving and we ended up on the freeway. "I was online and I noticed there is a lot of things to do in Santa Fe that are open 24 hours. So I made a list and we are going to do all of them until you have to get back home."

"Sounds great." I sat back and turned on the radio. We sat in a comfortable silence until we reached our first stop, "We're going bowling?" I asked Troy.

Troy smiled. "Yep, it's black light bowling. I thought it would be fun." He cut the engine and got out of the car. I walked over to him.

"I'm glad I brought my credit card." I said to myself as Troy grabbed my hand and we walked inside.

"You aren't going to use it Gab. You've paid for more than enough things since we've been together." He kissed my hand and I rolled my eyes. "What size?"

"Six" I said, as we approached the counter. He talked to the girl who looked very tired and bored. We got our lane and our shoes. I let go of his hand and searched for the perfect bowling ball. I found a light orange one and made my way back to Troy. "This is so cool." I leaned over and tied my shoes.

"Glad you like it baby." He set up the name board. He put me under sweetheart and him under wildcat. But it ended up being shortened. "You're up sweetheart." I felt a little pat on my butt as I walked past him with my orange ball.

I put my fingers in the holes and stepped carefully and threw the ball down the lane. Strike. I turned around and smirked at Troy. "Your turn wildcat." I winked at him.

He let out a frustrated sigh. "Do you have to be good at everything?" He whined. I gave him an encouraging kiss.

"Yes, yes I do." I said confidently before taking a seat. I watched his cute butt as he bowled. He really had the cutest guy butt ever. I looked up at the score board. "Oh man," I giggled. "You only got four? What are you new?"

He turned around and glared at me. "Don't start Montez."

I giggled. "I'm shaking in my bowling shoes." I said as he threw the ball into the gutter. "Oh honey," I walked over to him and gave him a tight hug. "You'll do better next time."

"Bite me." He grumbled, unhappily as he walked away.

I picked up my orange ball and threw it down the lane. I only got five this time. I turned around to see Troy smirking at me. "What is that look for?" I asked him.

Troy shook his head. "Oh nothing sweetheart."

"Weirdo." I said loud enough for him to hear. I grabbed the ball and knocked over the five remaining pins. I turned around and wrapped my arms around Troy. I bit down on his shoulder and he yelped.

"Gabi! What the hell was that for?" He asked, almost dropping me.

I shrugged. "You told me to bite you." I smirked at him before taking my seat.

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**Don't forget to review :)**


	24. When I Get Where I'm Going

**Gabriella's POV**

Troy got be back home on time this morning. I took a short 2 hour nap before mom woke me up at 7:30. Visiting hours started at 8 so I got dressed quickly and met mom downstairs. I looked at myself in the mirror in the kitchen. I looked as tired as I felt. Last night was so worth it though. After I kicked Troy's ass at bowling, we got some food at a diner. He definitely helped me take my mind off of everything that was happening.

"Alright Gabriella, let's go." Mom said as she picked up her purse.

"I'm going to call Ian and tell him to pick me up at the hospital." I said quietly. "Is that alright?"

She nodded and I followed her to the car. "I suppose so."

"Alright." I got into the passenger seat and we drove silently to the hospital. Once we parked I popped out of the car. I called Ian my driving instructor and told him the change of plans. I walked inside up to papa's room.

He looked up and smiled at me. "Hey little girl." He said quietly. "I knew you and Katie would be early."

I smiled at him. "How are you feeling Papa?" I sat next to him, holding his hand.

"I'm tired but that's alright, I'm glad you're here." He said quietly. I kissed his hand gently. "Your mom just left, she got a phone call."

I nodded. 'Oh, alright." I sighed. 'You really scared us Papa."

He frowned. "I'm sorry little girl. How is that boyfriend of yours? Taking care of you I hope." He started coughing. I handed him some water.

"It's kind of hard to have a relationship when your mother says you can't hang out with your boyfriend." I said, looking at the door that opened. Mom walked in. "And when you have driving lessons going one place to another and stayed at Albuquerque rocks until dinner time. It is very hard to have a relationship"

"Gabriella Your grandfather just had a heart attack. No need for him to listen to you moan and complain." Mom took a seat on the other side of the bed. "How are you feeling Dad?"

He looked over at my mom. "I'm fine Katie. Healthy as a horse. I want to go home now." He looked over at me. "And why aren't you letting this little girl see her boyfriend? He is a nice kid."

Mom rolled her eyes. "Dad, don't get me started."

"You're being ridiculous Katherine. What would your mother say?" My mom stiffened abruptly and looked at my grandfather. "My thoughts exactly." Papa turned to me. "Little girl, how about you go get papa some pudding?"

"Chocolate?" I asked him.

He smiled at me. "Of course."

I walked out of the room and down to the cafeteria. I asked for some pudding then looked at the menu and ordered some breakfast for myself. I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and saw Troy. "Troy? What are you doing here?" I wrapped my arms around him tightly.

"I just wanted to make sure everything was alright." He handed me some flowers. "This is for your grandpa, from the Bolton Family. You can say you intercepted it on the way up." He winked at me. "Bella has an appointment at the vet so I have to go take her."

"Alright, thank you for these. They're sweet. I'm sure Papa will appreciate the thought." I pulled him against me and kissed his lips slowly. "I love you."

He smiled at me. "I love you too." He kissed the back of my hand and walked out the cafeteria. I smiled to myself and got my food and the pudding. I opened the card on the flowers.

"Feel Better Johnny Rocks. You are an inspiration to Albuquerque. Our thoughts are with you and your family. With love, The Bolton Family."

I smiled and put the card back in the little envelope, sticking it back in the flowers. I grabbed the tray and walked to the elevator. I went into Papa's room and sat down. "These are for you, The receptionist told me there were for you on the way up."

"Who are they from?" Papa asked me. I shrugged. He opened the card. "The Bolton Family. How nice. Katie, you'll have to thank them for me. Give him some vacation time or something."

Mom grumbled quietly to herself. I started eating my breakfast as we talked to Papa. I checked the time and went downstairs to meet Ian for our appointment. Ian made a mock driving test. We did it a couple times and I got better each time. I drove back to the hospital around noon. We sat in the car as Ian looked over his notes.

"We can meet up for the rest of the week then on Friday I'll take you for the first drivers test. Is that good for you?" Ian asked as he unbuckled his seatbelt.

"That's fine, I'll set up an appointment." I got out of the car. "Thank you Ian."

"No problem Gabriella, I hope your Grandfather gets better." He got into the car and I waved as he drove away.

I turned to walk into the hospital. "Gabi! Gabriella!" I turned around to see who was calling my name. I saw Mrs. Bolton come walking up. She threw her arms around me tightly. "I miss you Gabi! I wish you could come over more, at least when I'm awake."

I giggled quietly. "Me too. I miss making cookies with you and our heart to hearts." I pouted. "What are you doing here? Troy dropped me off flowers this morning. Papa loved them."

"I have an appointment with my Gynecologist." She made an unhappy face. "It is terrible. Let me tell you first hand. Well its not terrible it's just.."

"Awkward?" I offered. She nodded. "I'm sorry. I hope everything turns out well?" I gigged. "I don't know what to say."

She smiled at me. "That's alright Gabi. Come over if your mom ever lets do something by yourself." She hugged me tightly, giving me a motherly kiss on the forehead. "I'll talk to you later."

"Bye Lucy." I waved to her, going into my building. I ran into my mom who was standing at the doorway watching me. "Hey mom, Ian said I could pass my test so I'm going to make an appointment on Friday."

"That's great Gabriella." She said blankly. "What was Lucille doing here?"

"She had a doctor appointment. You know, why regular people go to the hospital. She said she misses me." I said walking past her. I swear I heard my mom mumble 'smartass' but the world may never know. I walked up to Papa's room. He was sleeping peacefully in his bed. My phone vibrated in my pocket and I opened to a picture of Troy and Bella. I smiled to myself and set it as my wall paper. I put my phone next to me and laid on the little couch in the room. I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

"Gabriella, wake up." Somebody nudged me. "Gabriella."

I opened one eye and looked at my mom. "What?" I hissed.

"I have to go to the office, so you can stay here and wait for me to come back or come with me." Her arms crossed in front of her chest.

"I'll call Taylor to come pick me up." I offered, closing my eyes again.

Mom picked up my phone and handed it to me. "Call her right now."

I sighed loudly and sat up. "Fine." I unlocked my phone and called Taylor. "Hey Tay"

_"Hey Gab, what's up?"_ Taylor answered

"nothing much, just at the hospital" I said looking at my mom.

"_Troy told me about your grandpa. I saw Bella she is the cutest."_ Taylor laughed. _"She was trying to eat Chad's hair."_

"aw that's cute" I giggled quietly. "I was wondering if you could pick me up, we can hang out or something"

_"What time?"_ She asked.

"um, it doesn't matter" My mom eyed me. I rolled my eyes at her.

_"I'll be there in like 20 minutes."_

I smiled to myself "Alright, Thank you so much"

_"Bye Gab."_ She hung up.

I looked at my mom. "She'll be here in twenty minutes."

"Alright, I'll see you later. Call me if anything changes." She walked over to papa and planted a kiss on his cheek. "Bye daddy."

"Bye Katie." He mumbled tiredly. "Hey little girl, come here."

I walked over and sat on the chair next to the bed. "Hey Papa."

"I want you to have Albuquerque Rocks. Let your mom take care of things for now, but when you're ready I want you to run things. Take care of your mom, alright?" He put his shaking hand over mine.

I nodded silently. "Of course Papa, I'll make sure everything is up to your standards. Everybody in Albuquerque looks up to you. I couldn't be more proud to have you as my Papa." I tried to fight back the tears. "I don't want you to go." I choked out quietly.

He squeezed my hand gently. "Not half as proud as I am of you. You are a wonderful little girl. You are loving and smart and careful. I couldn't ask for a more perfect granddaughter. I will never leave you little girl. I'll always be watching over you. Every single day." He said quietly. "I love you Gabi."

"I love you so much Papa." I hugged him carefully.

I pulled away carefully and he smiled at me. "Keep Troy around. He is good for you, even if your mother doesn't see it."

"I'll try." I giggled quietly. I heard my phone buzzing on the table. "I have to go, Be strong Papa. I love you."

"Always, I love you too little girl." He smiled at me. I grabbed my things and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Have fun."

"Bye Papa." I waved to him as I walked out of the door. I walked down stairs and saw Taylor's car waiting for me. I climbed in the passengers seat and smiled at her. "Hey Tay." I said quietly.

Taylor patted my leg. "Hey Gabi." She smiled at me. "How are you?"

I shrugged. "I'm alright considering. How are you?"

"I'm worried about you, of course. But I'm good. Chad's always keeping me entertained in someway or another." She laughed quietly. "What should we do?"

"Whatever you want, anything." I said, pulling my seatbelt on. I sat back as we started driving away. I looked out the window. I closed my eyes for a couple minutes then opened them. We were passing East high. "What are we doing over here?"

"You know exactly what were doing here." Taylor smiled at me and turned down Troy's street. She parked in front of his house. "Troy's here, Chad's here, and we're surprising them."

A small smile crept on my face. "Really?"

Taylor nodded. "Duh, let's go." She got out of the car.

I grabbed my purse and got out of the car. I closed the door behind me and walked up to the door.. I knocked on the door firmly. Taylor standing behind me. Lucy opened the door. "GABI!" She wrapped my in a tight hug, "Oh Taylor honey, come here." She wrapped her arms around Taylor too. "Come in, come in."

Taylor giggled quietly. "Nice to see you too Mrs. Bolton."

"The boys are upstairs. You can go up." Lucy smiled at up. "And for the last time Taylor McKessie, call me Lucy."

I giggled and walked upstairs to Troy's room. I waved Taylor over. "Ambush, in 3... 2...1" I opened the door and Taylor and I ran in, tackling our boyfriends. Troy was sitting on the floor, Chad on the bed. I jumped on top of Troy.

Troy laughed and wrapped his arms around me. "Hey baby." I kissed his lips gently. "You look beautiful today."

I rolled my eyes. "Do not." I cuddled in his lap. "Missed you." I put my face in his neck.

He rubbed my back slowly. "Missed you too as always. How is your grandpa doing?"

"Better today." I said quietly. "I saw your mom at the hospital today."

Troy looked at me confused. "Why was my mom there?"

"Gynecologist." I explained.

He looked at me disgusted. "I don't need to know that."

I giggled and sat up. He smiled at me and put his lips on mine. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer to me. I tilted my head and parted my lips. His tongue met mine, brushing against it gently. Troy's fingertips moved down my knee slowly.

"Is that a condom balloon?" Chad asked from on top of the bed.

I pulled my lips away from Troy's and giggled. "Connie the condom." I looked over at them.

Taylor raised her eyebrows at me. "You're serious?"

Troy nodded. "Yes. That's its name."

"And I thought we were weird Tay." Chad mumbled.

I glad at Chad. "Don't make me hurt you."

"You wouldn't…" Chad tempted, moving Taylor in front of him.

Taylor rolled her eyes. "Thanks babe, so gentlemanly of you."

"She scares me sometimes." He shrunk down behind Taylor.

Troy laughed, pulling me closer to him. "Don't hurt Chad, his ego is bruised enough since you beat him in Call of Duty."

"That was one time!" Chad yelled. "Bet she can't do it again."

I smiled at Chad. "Oh Chad, will you ever learn not to bet me?" I turned to Troy. "Do you have Call of Duty so I can beat Chad… again?"

I got off Troy as he went over to his TV and set it up. "It should be.. Found it." He handed me and Chad remotes. I sat on the bed, Troy sat behind me.

"You are going down Danforth." I pointed to him as he set up the game.

"Team Death Match?" Chad asked, looking at me.

I nodded. "Of course." I leaned back against Troy as the game searched for opponents. He wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed the back of my neck. "No distractions Bolton." I warned him as the game started. I took off finding a good hiding place. I saw someone in the corner of the screen and killed them.

After about 10 minutes the game finished. "I think I did pretty good." Chad said confidently.

The results came on screen. "28 kills! 15 assists and 2 deaths. I kicked your ass Danforth!" I yelled at him.

Troy laughed from behind me and Taylor rolled her eyes at me. "I don't understand these games." Taylor mumbled.

I got up and turned off the TV and the game console. "That was fun. I'm sorry Chad. I'll let you win next time, I promise." I smiled at him and sat back in Troy's lap.

Chad pouted to Taylor who kept pushing him away. "You're acting like a 5 year old, it was just a game, get over it." She said scooting away. He just pulled her closer and kissed her all over her face.

I turned back to Troy and smiled. "They're so cute."

Troy wrapped his arms around me tightly and kissed my lips. 'Not as cute as us." He winked at me.

I giggled quietly and kissed his lips gently. "I love you Bolton." I leaned my forehead against his.

"I love you too Sweetheart." I cuddled against him with my head resting on his chest.

We hung out a little longer before Taylor took me back to the hospital. I called my mom to let her know I was going back. She said she'd meet me there in an hour or so. I walked up to Papa's room. He was sleeping quietly. The only noise were the beeps from the heart monitor.

I sat on the couch and pulled my knees to my chest. "I really hope you pull through Papa." I said quietly, looking at him. I dug through my purse and found a book to read. I opened it up and started reading.

* * *

The week continued on as normal. I passed my drivers test on Friday morning and I finally got to drive my car around, anywhere I want. My mom was still adamant on me following her rules. But what she didn't know couldn't hurt her. Papa was still in the hospital in the same condition. Mom was busy with work. I flew down to see my dad for the weekend. I filled him in on everything that went on all week. I missed my dad a lot.

When the plane landed on Monday afternoon I had 3 missed calls. I called my mom back, not bothering to listen to the voicemail. I walked to the baggage claim and waited for my small suitcase. "Hey Gabriella, I can't pick you up. I'm at the hospital with Papa. Did you get my voicemail?" Her voice sounded frantic.

"Yes but I didn't listen to it, I just got off the plane. What's going on?" I asked, looking for my suitcase.

Mom sighed. "He had another heart attack this morning."

"Oh my god, is he alright?" I asked, pulling my suitcase off the belt.

"No, Gabi. He's not doing good." She said quietly.

"I'll take a cab, I'll be right over there." I hung up on her and ran outside. I jumped in the first cab I saw. I told him to go to the hospital. I pulled out my phone and called Troy.

"Hello?" He asked. "Gab?"

"Hi babe, I just landed and I'm in a cab because mom is at the hospital. Papa had another heart attack this morning. I'm scared Troy." I said quietly. "Mom said he was not doing well at all."

"I'm sorry baby, you could have called me, I could've picked you up." He said quietly.

"I know but the cab was already here. I miss you." I rubbed my hand against my pant leg.

"I miss you too babe. You go take care of your Papa. Be strong for him, alright?" He told me. I frowned.

I let out a shaky breath. "I'll try. I'll let you know if anything changes." I pushed my hand through my hair. "How are your parents?" I asked him.

"They're acting all weird. I don't know what's up with them." Troy said. "Maybe you could get it out of my mom."

I shrugged. "I'm sure its nothing." I looked at the window and we were pulling up to the hospital. "I'm at the hospital and I have to go. I'll talk to you later. I love you baby."

"I love you too sweetheart. Be strong." He said quietly. I nodded and hung up. I paid the cab driver and gout my suitcase. I walked inside the hospital and up to the floor my Papa was on. I walked in his room and saw my mom sitting by him.

"Hey mom." I said quietly, putting my suitcase in the corner. "How is he doing?"

She looked up at me, wiping the tears from her face. "Not good. Soon. I can feel it." She said quietly. I walked over to my mom and wrapped my arms around her tightly. "How's your father?"

"Busy as ever. Ruby and I went shopping though. I got you the perfume you like, from that little store on Rodeo Drive." I said quietly. "Do you think your going to stay here?"

She shook her head. "Probably not. I'll move back to California. Probably San Francisco. Maybe the Napa Valley. I'm not sure yet."

"What about Albuquerque Rocks?" I asked her.

She sighed. "I don't know Gabriella. I'm getting a good offer from a guy from Arizona who wants it. I don't have the heart to sell it though. It was Papa's baby." She said quietly. "I'll probably still own it, I'll just have to hire a manager."

I kissed the top of her head. "I love you mom."

"I love you too baby." I climbed onto her lap and put my head in her chest, like I did when I was a little girl. She pulled me closer to her and rubbed my back slowly. "Everything will be okay Gabi." She whispered against the top of my head.

Papa passed away that night. July 23rd. When we got home from the hospital I got in my car and drove straight to Troy's. I parked my car in front of his house. I let out a harsh sob. The tears have been building up for weeks now. My Papa was gone. I wouldn't get to see him ever again. I wouldn't get to have him at my wedding. He wouldn't meet my kids when I had them. He wouldn't be there to tell me stories about when I was little. He was gone. The tears were streaming now, down my face with no chance of stopping. My eyes burned, I could barely see.

I barely made it up to his porch. I knocked on the door loudly. I sniffled and looked down at my feet. I heard footsteps coming closer. The door opened and I looked up at Troy who stood in the door way. He knew, just by the look on my face. "Oh Gabi." He said quietly.

I wrapped my arms around him tightly burying my head in his chest. I unleashed my sobs as he closed the door. He picked me up and carried me up stairs. He rubbed my back soothingly. Troy set me down on his bed and I curled up in a ball of sobs and hiccups. I can imagine myself, red faced and hideous. My throat hurt and my head pounded. I hate crying almost as much as I hated the fact that my Papa was gone forever. Troy didn't say anything he just pulled me closer to him and let me cry.

"When I get where I'm goin'  
On the far side of the sky  
The first thing that I'm gunna do  
Is spread my wings and fly  
I'm gunna land beside a lion  
And run my fingers through his mane  
Or I might find out what its like to ride a drop of rain."

Troy started singing quietly. I tried to muffle my sobs so I could listen to him sing. I could feel myself calming down already.

"Yeah when I get where I'm going  
There'll be only happy tears  
I will shed the sins and struggles I have carried all these years.  
And I'll leave my heart wide open.  
I will love and have no fear,  
Yeah when I get where I'm going,  
Don't cry for me down here."

I looked up at Troy and he wiped my tears carefully.

"I'm gunna walk with my granddaddy  
He'll match me step for step.  
And I'll tell him how I missed him every minute since he left.  
Then I'll hug his neck.  
Yeah, when I get where I'm going  
There'll be only happy tears."

His voice started to fade out slowly as I drifted towards sleep.


	25. Little spat

**Troy's POV**

I watched Gabi sleep. Her Grandpa died. My heart broke seeing her like this. She'd been asleep for a couple of hours now. I looked at the clock. 12:58. I laid down beside her and pulled her closer to me. I knew my time was limited with Gabi. I knew she was going to be in California in less than a month. I knew I was going to miss her like crazy. I buried my face in her soft brown curls.

I laid there quietly. I couldn't sleep at all so I didn't even try. I heard Gabi whimper quietly, she turned around to face me. "Gabi?" I asked quietly, pushing her hair back. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked at me for a second before closing them.

"My eyes hurt." She said quietly. I leaned down and kissed her warm forehead gently.

My arms tightened around her and pulled her against me. "Go back to sleep baby." I said quietly. She shook her head slowly and reached up and touched my face. Her fingers found my lips, she pulled me down and gave me a light kiss. "My face is not Braille sweetheart." I whispered against her lips.

She smiled at me and let out a small giggle. She connected her lips back to mine gently. "I love you." Her cold hands went under my shirt. "You're warm."

"Your hands are cold." I muttered and leaned my forehead against hers. "I love you so much." I kissed her forehead, down to her nose. "You are so beautiful."

She shook her head. "Am not. I bet my face is all blotchy and my eyes hurt and I bet my hair looks like a tangled mess." I chuckled and pulled away from her. "Where are you going?"

"Nowhere sweetheart, I'm right here." I put my hands on her waist before getting comfortable. I pulled her back against me. "My balls were stuck to my leg."

She let out a giggle before putting her face into the pillow. She opened her eyes and blinked a couple times, looking up at me. "That must be uncomfortable."

Her eyes were bloodshot and I could tell they were tired even the rest of her body wasn't. "You can't even imagine." I cupped her cheek and gave her a light kiss.

She let out a breath and laid back. "I can't believe he's gone." I pulled her closer to me and rubbed her arm gently.

"He's in a better place now. He doesn't have anymore pain." I mumbled against the top of her head. "He's looking over you right now. He doesn't want you to cry, he wants you to be happy and live your life."

Gabriella sighed and looked up at me. "You know what he told me?" I shook my head. "He told me that I should keep you because you're good for me. He liked you. He said you were a good kid."

I smiled at her. "Well you know, grandpa's are always right."

She nodded and kissed my chest. "Papa was definitely right about you."

* * *

She drove herself home around five in the morning. She promised she'd be back though. I knew the next couple of days were going to be hard for her. I fell asleep about an hour after she left. I felt somebody shake me. "Troy, honey, wake up."

I opened my eyes to see my mom. "Mom?" It was weird that she was home in the middle of the day. "What are you doing home?"

"Your dad called me, He told me that Gabi's grandfather passed away yesterday." She said, sitting on my bed.

I blinked a couple times and sat up. "I know, She came over last night." I rubbed my eyes. "She was heartbroken."

"Poor Gabi, is she coming over today?" She asked me rubbing my arm.

"Not sure, you should call her, since I can't hang out with her. Bullshit." I laid back down.

Mom let out a breath. "You know what? I will. I should give her mother a piece of my mind too." She walked out of the room talking to herself. I chuckled at her and laid back down. I drifted off to sleep again.

* * *

The rest of the week was different. Gabi came over more often during the day since she had her license. On Wednesday they had the memorial service. All employees and families were invited to. I saw Gabi, couldn't talk to her though cause her mom was attached at her hip. Gabs told me the funeral was on Sunday morning. After Wednesday I could tell her mom was getting suspicious, or doing something about it. Gabi had to come back earlier and leave later. One day she just didn't come at all. I think she fell asleep.

She told me that she was getting closer to her mom. I was happy for her, but to be honest, it scared the shit out of me. I was the reason they weren't getting along. I was the one thing standing in the way between their mother/daughter relationship. I felt guilty. I wanted her to have a good relationship with her mother. I wanted her to be happy. I had to keep myself occupied.

I've been putting applications into various jobs around town. I hadn't heard back from any yet, so I decided to go check in with some of the locations. Today was Saturday so everything was open. The first place I went into was a nice restaurant. I've never been a waiter but I learn quick and I could do anything.

"Hello, welcome to Murray's. Table for one?" The host at the front desk asked.

I shook my head. "No, Ma'am I was wondering if Mr. Norman was in. I applied for a waiter job and I was just wondering if he has made a decision yet."

She smiled at me. "I'll go get him for you." She walked away and I took a seat in a chair.

I saw Mr. Norman walking up. I stood up. "Hello Mr. Norman, I'm Troy Bolton."

"Oh right, I was going to call you, but since you are here, do you have time for an interview?" He asked.

I nodded. "Yes, of course Sir."

"Please follow me." We walked back into his office, after a brief interview he hired me. I filled out a lot of paperwork. "You start tomorrow."

I stood up, handing him the paperwork. "Thank you so much sir." I shook his hand. "I won't let you down." I walked out of the building. I just got a job, now I needed work clothes. I called my mom, she was at work.

"Hey honey." She answered. "What are you up to?"

"Hey mom, I just got a job." I told her. She squealed like a teenage girl. "Mom." I groaned.

"Oh honey, I'm so proud of you!" I could just see her beaming in her office.

"Thanks mom. I have to go find work clothes. Do you want to come with me?" I asked her.

She was ruffling through something in her background. "Sure honey, how about you pick us up some lunch and we can go during my lunch break."

"Alright" We decided on lunch and I had to pick her up in an hour. I went home and got changed before grabbing lunch for me and my mom. I went to the hospital to pick her up. She climbed into my truck.

"Are you sure you don't want to take my car?" Mom asked before hesitantly putting the seatbelt on.

I rolled my eyes. "You already are in here mom. Eat." I handed her the bag of food. I started driving. "So I work at Murray's. I start tomorrow."

"That's great honey." She said, with a mouth full of her cheeseburger. "What do you need to wear?" She asked after she swallowed.

I unfolded the piece of paper and handed it to my mom. "They gave me this."

"Oh, neckties." She read off the paper. "You are going to look so handsome in your work uniform."

I groaned. "Mom."

She shrugged. "What? Where do you want to go to?"

I shrugged. "I have no idea, that is why I brought you." I chuckled.

She directed me to her favorite department store in the mall and we happened to get everything we needed. She ventured off as I was trying things on but came back with a bag. I didn't say anything about it. I grabbed everything and we walked up to the counter and mom paid for it. We got back in my truck and I drove her back to work. She took the bag with her. Weird.

I drove back home and hung up my work clothes. I heard somebody running up the stairs. Weird. Nobody was home. I closed my closet and slowly walked to the door. The door flew open and somebody wrapped their arms around me. It took me a minute to realize it was Gabi. She pressed her lips to mine firmly. I didn't complain and wrapped my arms around her. She pulled away slowly and smiled at me. "Hi baby, I miss you. My mom is driving me crazy. I miss you. I kept trying to sneak out but every time I tried to hear her sleeping she was on the phone. So I fell asleep and I'm sorry. I miss you. Did I say that already?" She tried to say in one breath.

I smiled and let out a chuckle. "I miss you too. It's alright." I cupped her face and gave her a gentle kiss. "I love you"

She leaned against me. "I love you too" She pouted. "as much as I'd like to stay I'm supposed to meet my mom back home because I have groceries in my car." she sighed. "I'll see what I can get away with tonight."

My lips pressed against her forehead. "If you can't don't worry about it, just call me. Okay?" I kissed her nose. She nodded. I gave her one last kiss on her lips. "Let me walk you down stairs."

"Okay." She said quietly. I wrapped my arms around her from behind. She lifted her knees up and I carried her down the stairs. She put her feet down and walked with me to my front door. She turned to face me. She pushed me up against the door and kissed my lips firmly. I parted my lips and she made the most of it. Our tongues battled frantically as her hands made their way under my shirt. Her nails raked my abdomen which she knew instantly turned me on.

My hands made their way down her body. I picked her up by her butt and walked her over to the couch. I broke the kiss to lay her down. I ran my tongue along her collar bone up to the sweet spot on her neck. I bit the soft skin and sucked firmly. She let out a moan before pushing me off her. "I can't, I have to go home." She said, looking at me. "And I cannot come back from the grocery store with a hickey babe."

I frowned. "How am I supposed to let you leave after that?" I leaned down to kiss her lips again before getting up. I pulled her up. "Call me tonight, okay?"

She smiled sadly and nodded. "I promise I will." I kissed her lips gently again. "I love you, I'm sorry."

"I love you, me too." I mumbled. She kissed my chin as I opened the door for her. She walked out and I patted her butt as she walked past me. She turned to look back at me and a slow smile crept on my face. I watched her get in her car and drive away. I closed the door behind me and leaned against it. I licked my lips slowly before walking upstairs.

* * *

The next morning I got ready for work. I had to go in at 10 for some intensive training. I got off at 6 in the afternoon. I took all the tags off my clothes and put them on. I tied my tie flawlessly. I walked downstairs and my mom was sitting on the couch. I prayed she didn't see me.

"Oh honey! Let me see you." I sighed and turned to her. "you look so handsome! Let me take a picture of you."

"Mom!" I groaned. "I'm going to be late for work."

"It's just one picture Troy." She said pulling out her camera. She took a picture. "see, all done. Have a good day at work honey."

"Thanks mom." I said walking out of the door. I rolled my eyes to myself and got in my truck. I drove to Murray's and parked in the back. I got in through the back and met Mr. Norman.

I picked it up quickly, being a waiter was fairly easy. By my lunch break at two I was exhausted. I ordered some food, since we got one free meal. I had an 30 minute lunch. I was doing pretty well for my first day. I had almost 30 dollars just in cash tips. I got nothing but compliments so that was a confidence boost. After lunch was over Mr. Norman got all the waiters and waitresses together.

"We have a big party coming in, we need to set up a table for 20 people. I'm putting Julie and Troy on this since you are mentoring him. Also, Jeff. Victoria for back up." Mr. Norman said. "Got it?"

I turned to look at Julie. "I'm nervous." I said with a nervous chuckle.

"Don't worry about it, it will be easy trust me. I'm only going to give you a couple people since it is your first day." She said with a smile. "Come on we have to go put a couple tables together." She said walking away from me.

I followed her and helped with putting the tables together. I went back to my other tables and made sure everything was okay with them. I got a table some drinks and saw people filing in for the big party. I filled up the drinks and walked back to the table. "Here you go. Do you guys need anything else?"

"Check, please." The lady said.

"Alright I'll be right back." I got their check quickly and handed it to them. "I'll be back to pick it up soon."

"Troy, come on." Julie waved me over. I walked over to her and we walked over to the big party. "Hello, welcome to Murray's. My name is Julie, I will be one of your waiters." Julie spoke in her waitress voice and I glanced around the table. Then I saw her. My girlfriend, sitting at the end of the table right next to her mother. Her mother staring at me. Gabi was looking at her menu. "This is Troy, he is new and today is his first day, he will be helping too. Jeff and Victoria will be glad to help you as well if you need anything."

Gabi's head shot up when she heard my name. She looked at me, confused at first but then she gave me a small smile. I gave her a small smile back. "Troy, you take the end, I'll take the middle. Jeff you take the other end." Julie said.

Of course I got Gabi's end. I sighed inwardly before pulling out my order sheet. "What can I get for you to drink?" I said with a smile.

"Dr. Pepper, please." Gabi said, with a full smile now.

"Can I get an Iced tea, no lemon? We need extra sweet and low's please." Gabi's mom said with forced niceness.

"No problem." I turned to the man sitting next to her. "for you?"

"What kind of beer do you have?" The man asked.

"We have Budweiser, Bud Light, Miller, Miller light, Blue Moon, and a variety of imported Ales." I said, confidently.

"Can I get a Blue Moon please, with an orange slice?" The man asked.

"Of course, and for you Ma'am." I asked the lady sitting next to the man. I glanced at Gabi who was watching me.

"Hot tea will be fine." She said, opening her menu.

"I'll be right back with your drinks." I said with a smile before walking over to get the check from the previous table. I walked to the back and ran the card, putting in the drink orders. I put the receipts in the check holder and walked back to the table. "Have a wonderful day." I said smiling.

I walked back to the kitchen and grabbed my tray of drinks. I grabbed a holder full of sweet and low and walked back to the table. "Hot Tea" I handed her the saucer. "Blue moon with orange slice." I handed him the chilled glass. "Iced tea, no lemon with sweet and low." I handed Gabi's mom the drink and the holder. I walked behind Gabi. "And Dr. Pepper for the beautiful lady." I set her drink down and winked at her.

"Thank you sir." Gabi said with a light blush on her cheeks.

"Would you like to order any appetizers?" I asked., looking at the four of them.

"An order of Calamari, please." The man said.

"Coming up right away." I said, smiling. I walked back to the kitchen putting the order in. I walked to the table, pocketing the cash and putting the receipts under the cash register. I put the holder with the others. I walked over to the other tables checking up on them.

"I didn't know he worked here Gabriella." Ms. Dutch said to Gabi.

"Neither did I. I can't hang out with him remember?" She said sarcastically. "So what if he does. He's doing a fantastic job. You better not do anything mom. Seriously."

"I won't do anything honey." She said back to Gabi. "At least he knows his place now." She added quietly.

"Mom!" She hissed. "That was rude."

I walked passed them and glanced back and I saw Gabi's face turn pale. She knew I heard everything. I walked back to the kitchen and grabbed the calamari plate. I walked over and set it on the table. "Are you ready to order?" I asked, avoiding looking at Gabi. I took the orders of the man and the woman across the Gabi and her mom. I walked over and waited for her mom to speak. She ordered some complicated dish she prayed I would get wrong, but I didn't. I looked at Gabi. "What can I get for you miss?"

"I would like the Fettuccini Alfredo. Instead of the Fettuccini can I get Angel Hair?" She looked up at me, a frown on her face.

"Of course. I'll put those orders right in, would you like some more hot tea ma'am?" I walked to the other side of the table.

"Water would be nice, thank you." She said.

I nodded. "I'll be right back." I walked over to the kitchen and put their orders in. I grabbed a glass of water and handed it to the lady.

"Excuse me sir," Gabi said, causing me to look at her. "Where is the restroom?"

"On the other side of the building, women's is to the left." I said, nodding before walking away. I walked around to make sure all my tables were happy before standing by the kitchen.

"What's up with you?" Julie asked me as she put in orders.

"You know the big table?" She nodded. "My girlfriend and her mom are at my end of the table. Her mom hates me." I said, looking out into the dining area then looking back at the screen.

"The pretty brunette?" She asked. I nodded. "That sucks dude."

"Tell me about it." I turned to see Gabi in the door way. She waved me over silently before walking away. "I'm just going to go pee. I'll be right back." I told Julie.

I walked down the long hallway towards the bathroom. "I'm sorry." I heard from behind me. I turned around to see Gabi, leaning against the wall. "Why didn't you tell me you worked here?"

"When could I? The five minutes you were out my house yesterday? Or the 10 minute phone call last night?" I asked her, crossing my arms.

"I'm sorry okay? I know I've been busy. My mother has been sticking to me like a leech. I wish I could have stayed and talked longer but I couldn't." She let out a breath. "God, can we not do this today? I just had to watch my grandpa get buried."

"Fine." I said shortly walking into the bathroom. I washed my hands and splashed water on my face. I dried myself off and walked out of the bathroom.

"Troy, don't be like this." She said quietly, holding onto my arm.

I just shrugged. "It's fine. I know my place now." I said with a roll of my eyes. I walked away from her.

"Troy!" She yelled after me. I just kept walking, I walked over to a table who needed their check. I got it for them before I got food for another table.

I walked to the kitchen and took a drink of my water. It was hot in the restaurant. "Your girl looks unhappy." Julie said as she waited for the food with me.

"We got into a little spat when I ran into her at the bathroom." I said, monotone.

She smacked my arm. "Better suck it up Romeo, you've got food to deliver."

I rolled my eyes and walked back to their table. I took the empty calamari plate and took a mental note to bring another Dr. Pepper for Gabi and a tea for her mom. I put the plate in the kitchen and grabbed the drinks. I set them down. "Food should be out shortly." I said with a forced smile. Gabi avoided eye contact with me. I took the empty glasses and brought them to the kitchen.

I brought out the food to Gabi's table making sure Gabi's mom was happy. She didn't protest so I assumed it was good enough. I looked at the time. I had an hour before I got to go home. One of my other parties just left and new ones were coming in. Julie was helping me run smoothly between tables. It has been one hell of a day already.

The big party left about 15 minutes before I got off work. I walked over to Julie. "Do these parties always come in?" I asked her.

She shook her head. "Maybe 10 but not twenty." She said with an exhausted sigh.

Mr. Norman walked over. "Troy, you can go son. It's been a long day for you."

"Thank you Mr. Norman, How do you think I did?" I asked him wiping my hands on my apron.

"You did great son, Can you work Tuesdays Thursdays and Saturdays? 12 to 6?" He asked.

I nodded. "That sounds fine. Thank you sir." I clocked out and grabbed my things. I put my apron and work things in my locker. I walked out the back and over to my truck. I climbed in.

"Troy." I heard a voice and I jumped. I looked over and saw Gabi sitting in the passenger seat, hugging her legs.

"Gabi, you scared the shit out of me." I looked at her and sighed. "What are you doing here?"

"I told my mom I was going to Taylor's, but I just stayed here. Your doors are always unlocked." She said quietly.

"Where's your car?" I asked her looking around the lot.

"Three spaces down. I wanted to wait in here." She leaned against the door.

I sighed. "Come here." She just looked at me. "Come here." I opened my arms, she didn't budge. "Gabriella Katherine Montez. Get your ass over here."

"I thought you were mad." Gabi said quietly.

I shrugged. "I was, I'm over it. Now come here before kick your butt." I joked. She scooted over and wrapped her arms around me.

"You smell like food and sweat." She said, looking up at me.

"Well it was 80 degrees in there and it doesn't help when you wear a dress shirt and a tie." I wrapped my arms around her. "I'm sorry about what I said, I was just mad."

"I'm sorry too." She said leaning against me. She pulled away and smiled lightly. "You smell so how about I'll follow you to your house and we can talk there." She ran her fingers through my hair then pulled away and rubbed her fingers together then smiled at me.

* * *

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	26. Never Gonna Win

_"You got in too late that night,_  
_You and mama had a fight._  
_You weren't ever gunna win._  
_Never got to see me again."_

-Toby Keith

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**Troy's POV**

The days I didn't have to work went by quickly. We almost got caught by Gabi's mom a couple of times. She was catching onto us quickly. But we still pushed it. Tonight she said she was going to stay at Taylor's. We were going to meet up at the lake.

I grabbed a couple blankets and piled them in my truck. I drove down to the lake and waited for Taylor to drop off Gabi. I sat in the back of my truck and opened a bottle of water. I looked up at the sky. It was only 3 but it was already getting dark. There was a storm coming. I could smell it. I saw Taylor's car pull in and Gabi jumped out with her purse. I waved to Taylor as she drove away.

I put Gabi's purse in my truck and wrapped my arms around her. "Hello beautiful." I gave her lips a gentle kiss.

She smiled at me. "Hi handsome." She put her hand on my forearm and brushed her fingers over the tattoo.

I heard thunder rumbling in the distance. "A storm is coming soon, babe." I said wearily.

She shrugged. "So… let it rain. Who cares?" She pulled away from me and smiled. "I love dancing in the rain."

I chuckled as she started dancing. "It's not even raining yet sweetheart." As if it was on cue it started raining. "I guess I spoke too soon."

She giggled quietly and started spinning in circles. I sat on the tailgate of my truck and watched her spin. Our jeans got soaked through and her curls were out of place and drenched. I smiled at her. She never looked more beautiful. She stopped spinning and she walked over to me slowly. "I'm dizzy." She giggled then put her hands on my legs to steady herself.

Gabi looked up at the sky and the thunder sounded again. She spread out her arms letting the rain cover her body. She looked back at me and smile. Her mascara was running down her face. She looked like she was crying. "You alright sweetheart?" I laced my fingers in between her cold ones.

She nodded. "I'm perfect babe. Come dance with me." She tugged on my arm.

I got off the truck and we took a couple steps away from the truck. Her arms wrapped around my neck, I pulled her against me. My arms wrapped around her wet waist. We danced slowly taking little steps, back and forth. I wiped the mascara off her cheeks with the pads of my thumbs, I ended up smearing it. "You look beautiful baby." I said quietly.

She smiled at me. "I love you Troy. You'll always have my heart." I leaned my forehead against hers. "No matter what happens." Her cold lips pressed against mine gently. I brushed my warm tongue along her cold lips. She parted and our tongues battled for dominance. Her cold fingers held to the back of my hair. I held her against me.

Nothing mattered at that moment. It didn't matter that she was leaving in less than two weeks. It didn't matter that her mother hated me. It didn't matter that my heart was about to be ripped to pieces once she gets on that plane. It didn't matter that I might never see her again. All that mattered was this imperfectly perfect moment. The rain beating down on us. The angry sky roaring above us. Our drenched clothes that clung to our body. The makeup running down my beautiful girlfriends face. Our tongues dancing as we stood next to the lake where we spent most of our summer.

Gabi was the first to pull away. She smiled up at me and walked towards the truck. I closed the tailgate and followed her. I climbed in the truck and threw the dry blankets at her. She put her purse behind the seat. She peeled off her wet clothes one by one before wrapping herself up in the blanket. I did the same and climbed in the blanket with her. She cuddled up to me, using the body heat to our advantage. She sat in my lap, facing me. As she put her wet curls in a messy bun the blanket fell from her shoulders. Her bare chest was exposed and I wouldn't help but look. I felt the familiar twitch between my legs.

"Stop looking at my boobs. My nipples are hard." She covered them with her hands and I covered her shoulders with the blanket.

I smiled at her. "I can't help it." She rolled her eyes and kissed my lips slowly. Her hands moved from her chest to mine. Her hands moved down my abdomen to my penis. "Oh, I can't look at your boobs but you can touch me." I said sarcastically.

She giggled. "What it's not like we can do anything. We don't have any condoms." She smirked at me. I raised my eyebrows and smirked back at her. I leaned over and opened the glove box. I pulled out an unwrapped condom and held it up to her. "Why do you have condoms in your car?" She asked incredulously.

I shrugged and smirked at her. "Oh just in case my insatiable girlfriend is in the mood and where in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night." I said sarcastically. She smacked my chest. "It's a just in case we need a condom-condom."

She smiled at me and connected her lips against mine again. "Well in that case." Her cold hands wrapped around my penis stroking it slowly. "I'm a little cold." She said kissing towards my ear. She flicked her tongue against my earlobe. "Could you warm me up?" She asked seductively.

I felt myself harden in her hands. I kissed her neck firmly, sucking on the sweet spot of her neck. She let out a soft moan and threw her head back. I left a trail of open mouthed kisses down past her collar bone. My hands gripped her butt gently before moving up to her boobs. Her hands sped up as she stroked me. Her boobs fit perfectly in my hands. I outlined her nipple with my thumbs slowly. She moved one hand to grab the condom from where I dropped it on the seat. She opened it and unrolled the rubber on me. "I love you baby." I mumbled into her neck.

She lifted my chin up and kissed my lips firmly. "I need you Troy." She whispered against my lips. She positioned herself on top of me. She eased me into her slowly. I connected my lips against hers, my tongue ran along hers slowly. She wrapped her arms around my neck. I covered her up with the blanket. She moved her hips against mine slowly. She moaned quietly against my lips.

I put my hands on her hips and guided her slowly. I ran my tongue along her bottom lip, teasing it. She put her face in my neck. Her tongue left a trail of what felt like fire my along neck. She bit down hard on my the spot she stopped. She started to move her hips quicker, causing me to push in and out of her faster. I scooted my butt down on the seat, taking her deeper. "Mmm… Gab." I let out a moan that was caught in the back of my throat. "Fuck." I muttered quietly.

I moved my hands down to her butt and squeezed firmly. I pulled her down on me, pounding into her harder. "Oh, fuck baby." She moaned loudly throwing her head back. "God.. Oh, right there." She gyrated her hips in circles against me. Her fingers gripped onto my hair. "Troy, I'm… Oh!.. So close." She put her hands on my shoulders and dug her nails down.

My eyes shut tight as I pulled her down against me. It only took her a couple more thrusts before she let out a moan. I felt her walls clinching around me. I let out another groan as I released, riding out my high with her. She collapsed on my chest and buried her face in my neck. I held her against me tightly. I collected my breath and smiled as I kissed her shoulder. "You know I'll never look at my passenger seat the same way again." I said.

Gabi let out a giggle. "I'm sorry… I just needed you." She sat up and climbed into the drivers seat honking the horn with her butt. I chuckled and took the condom off. I put it in an empty water bottle rolling around on the floorboard.

"Hey Gabs, wanna go skinny dipping?" I said smirking at her.

"Hell yeah." She climbed out of the truck and ran toward the lake. I got out quickly behind her and ran to catch up to her. She ran onto the dock and jumped off the end of it. I followed her doing the same. She swam over to me, wrapping her arms and legs around me.

I smiled at her and placed a kiss on her lips. "déjà vu." I said with a smile.

"Not necessarily. It wasn't raining and we didn't just have sex before." She said matter-of-factly. I rolled my eyes at her. She giggled quietly. She smiled at me. "I love you Troy, thank you for the best summer of my life."

I kissed her nose before kissing her lips gently. "I love you too, Thank you for believing in me and never giving up on me." I said quietly against her lips. "Let's get back to the truck before my balls shrivel into raisins." I chuckled.

I swam over to the dock, holding onto her. I helped her up and climbed up onto the dock. I grabbed her hand and we ran to the truck. We climbed in and wrapped her arms around me. Her phone buzzed from in her purse. She reached behind the seat and pulled out her purse. She picked up her phone. "Four missed calls, what the hell." She put the phone up to her ears and her eyes went wide.

"Babe, what's wrong?" I asked, she put her hand up and played on her iPhone and put it up to her ear.

'What is going on Tay?" Gabi asked hurriedly. "What!?…How did she?…Oh god." She groaned. "No, no, no. Taylor it's not your fault. I shouldn't have made you lie. I'm so sorry. Yeah, I know… We're leaving now." She hung up and started rummaging through the clothes on the floor. She pulled her wet clothes on. "Mom knows I'm not with Taylor. She knows I'm with you. I have to get home now." Gabi said hurriedly.

I put on my clothes. "Gabi, she already knows so.."

"No Troy. She's probably in my room, packing my clothes as we speak… Get dressed now." She said, clicking on her seatbelt.

I buckled my belt and turned my truck on. I started driving back to the main road. I ran my fingers through my hair and sighed. Gabi was quiet on the ride back. I pulled up to her gate and punched in the code. I drove in as the gate opened. I parked the truck and got out. Gabi got out and she walked in the house.

"Gabriella, get packed. You're leaving tomorrow." Her mom said, sitting on the couch in the front room. I stepped in the door way. She turned to look at me. "Get out, this is between me and my daughter."

"Anything you could say to me, you can say to him Katherine." Gabi said, crossing her arms. "so go ahead mom."

"I gave you rules and you broke them so you will face the consequences Gabriella. You are leaving tomorrow." Her mom said looking at me. I took a step in. "I said get out. It's your fault. You caused this to happen." She said pointing at me.

"I did nothing but love your daughter. I don't understand what I have to do with you hating me for no reason. I've done nothing wrong. What did I do? Tell me." I said. "And don't you think I don't love Gabi because I love her more than anything." I held my arm out to her. "She is apart of me."

"Please. If you had the money you'd get that tacky tattoo removed after she left." Her mom said. "We had a great relationship before you came along. We are out here to take care of my now dead father."

"We were never close mom! You dropped me when I was eight. You went into your own little world." Gabi yelled at her. "Troy has nothing to do with anything. You are just a bitter bitch."

"Gabi, come on." I said. "She's your mom." I ran my fingers through my hair again. "You know what? It's fine. You win Katherine. Best of luck to you at UCLA Gabi, I hope you find somebody rich, from a great family that fits into your moms standards. Goodbye." I turned around and walked back out of the door.

"Troy, come on." Gabi said following me. I climbed into my truck. "Stop Troy just stop" she yelled and pounded on the window.

I rolled it down. "Why Gabi? I'll never be good enough for you. I don't know my place in the world. I don't have money. Your mom hates me and I can't let you hate her too." I felt tears burn in my eyes.

"Why are you giving up on me?" Gabi asked as she let out a sob. "Why are you walking away from us? I love you Troy. I fucking love you."

"God. I love you too. I'm not nor will I ever give up on you." I turned my head away as the tears fell down my cheeks. "I have to let you go. I have to let you enjoy your college experience and make up with your mom. I letting you go for you to be your full potential." I wiped my face. "I have to go." I started the truck.

"Troy!" She yelled and pounded on the car door. "Don't go." She choked out as I started driving away.

I felt the tears burn in my eyes as I drove away. My chest ached. I wiped my eyes and drove out of her driveway to my house. I slammed the door and walked up to my room. I closed the door behind me and threw my phone at the wall. I watched it crack into pieces.

I peeled off my clothes and turned on the shower. I climbed in and sat down putting my head between my legs. God where did this day go so wrong? After I was finished I got dressed and laid in my bed. I re-played the last 24 hours over and over again.

I woke up and looked at my clock. I was almost 11. I had work today. I got dressed for work and walked out to my truck. I drove to work and walked in through the back. "Hey Troy, oh you look like shit." Julie commented as I walked in the break room.

"Thanks Julie." I said sarcastically. The only words I've said since I spoke to Gabi. Gabi. I closed my eyes and put my head in my locker. She's probably long gone now.

"Hey Troy, Are you alright?" Julie asked looking over at me.

I shrugged. "Don't know." I put my apron on and closed my locker.

"Trouble in paradise?" She asked with a small smirk.

I let out a sigh. "She's gone." I walked out to go find what section I was in.

Work went by too quickly for my liking. It sucked having to force smiles and pretending to be happy but it did take my mind off of her for at least six hours. I drove home and took a quick shower. The smell of food was making me sick. I got dressed and flopped down on my bed. I heard my mom come home. I put my pillow over my face.

"Troy, honey?" I heard a knock on the door. She opened it and I could feel her looking at me. "Your dad is home and I need to tell you both something." She said.

I sat up and nodded. "I'll be right down." She walked back down stairs and I yawned. I made my way down stairs. I sat on the couch and waited for my parents. My dad came in and at down next to me. "Do you know what this is about?" Dad asked me.

I shrugged my shoulders. "I should be asking you."

"I have no idea." He said, looking at me. "You alright?" He looked at me up and down.

I shrugged as my mom walked in. "I have some exciting news for both of you. I don't know how you're going to take it… I've just come to terms with it." Mom started. I raised my eyebrows at her.

"What is it Luce?" Dad asked, looking up at her.

"Well, I'm pregnant." Mom said quietly.

My eyes grew. Pregnant? What? That means they… gross. I didn't even want to think about my parents having sex. Gross. I looked at my dad who looked just as shocked as I was. "You're what?" I asked looking back at my mom.

"I'm pregnant, you are going to be a big brother." Mom said, talking like I was a 4 year old.

"But mom your old." I blurted without even thinking about it.

My mom scoffed. "I am not old. I'm only 17 years older than you." She said, glaring at me.

I gave her a small smile. "Are you sure?" Dad asked, finally putting his input in.

"Positive." She said. "I'm 10 weeks, today."

Dad got up and smiled at her. 'That's great honey." He wrapped his arms around her tightly. Her gave her a kiss and my mom smiled. "I'm so happy."

I got up and wrapped my arms around my parents. "I'm happy for you mom."

"Thank you sweet heart, you should invite Gabi over. I want to tell her. She'll be so excited." Mom said, pulling away from my dad.

My face dropped. I felt a lump rise in my throat. "She's gone." I croaked out.

"what?" she asked me, confused. "What do you mean she's gone?"

I sat back down and looked up at her. "Yesterday her mom somehow found out that we were together when she was supposed to be at Taylor's. So when we got back to her house, we had a huge fight and I ended up leaving. So she's probably already back in LA, I wouldn't know. I threw my phone at the wall." I said putting my head between my hands.

"Oh Troy…" My mom said quietly, sitting next to me. "I'm so sorry baby." Her fingers ran through my hair slowly.

I sighed. "it's whatever mom." I lied as I was getting up. "I'm going to go lay down" I made my way up to my room, closing the door behind me.

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	27. Mama's Broken Heart

_"I cut my bangs with some rusty kitchen scissors._  
_I screamed his name til the neighbors called the cops._  
_I numbed the pain at the expense of my liver._  
_Don't know what i did next all i know i couldn't stop._

_Word got around to the barflies and the baptist._  
_My Mama's phone started ringing off the hook_  
_I could hear her now sayin She ain't gonna have it._  
_Don't matter how you feel, it only matters how you look._

_Go and fix your make up. Girl it's just a break up_  
_Run and hide your crazy and start acting like a lady_  
_cause I raised you better gotta keep it together,_  
_Even when you fall apart._  
_But this ain't my mama's broken heart"_

-Miranda Lambert

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**Gabriella's POV**

I laid on my bed replaying all the events of my misfortunate day. I ran out of tears around 3 in the morning. I've been laying here, numb for the past 12 hours. I couldn't sleep. Every time I moved my heart broke a little more. I turned my head to look at the alarm clock next to my bed. It was 7:30 in the morning. My forehead pounded and my throat was sore and dry.

The door swung open. "Gabriella. I brought you some boxes. I'll bring more in a minute. You should get ready. Your plane leaves at 2." Mom came over and sat on my bed. "Whatever you don't finish packing, I'll pack up for you." She rubbed my leg and I moved away from her. She sighed. "We're leaving at Noon."

I sat up and watched her leave. I slammed the door behind her and opened the boxes. I taped them up and made sure they were stable. I put all my photos and albums in the box. I taped it up and appropriately labeled them Photos.

I couldn't believe I was doing this. I couldn't believe my mom was actually making me leave. Fuck her. Fuck Katherine. She didn't deserve to be called mom, or even mother, or any fucking term of endearment. I just wanted to scream and curse and punch something. I hate her. I do, I hate her.

I put another box together, putting some of my things in it. I taped it up and labeled it. I grabbed my luggage and started piling my clothes in. I filled up my two big ones, and the two small ones. I put on Troy's shirt he left with me a couple weeks ago. I packed one of his basketball sweatshirts in one of my suitcases. I threw some shorts on and continued packing. I looked up at the time and at was almost time to leave. I packed up everything important to me. I looked around my half empty room. I looked at my closed balcony doors. I let out a shaky sigh started dragging my suitcases down the stairs.

Katherine and I put them in her car and I walked back to my room and stacked my boxes neatly. All I had left was clothes in my closet and my bed. I walked back down the stairs, holding my purse and my phone. "Are you going to change Gabriella?" Katherine asked me, looking me up and down.

"No." I said quietly before walking past her. I climbed in the back seat and looked at my phone. No missed calls. I got a text from Taylor to make sure I was okay last night but I didn't feel like replying. I was about to call her when I saw the gate open. I looked up to see if it was Troy. I prayed his Truck would come through those gates and he would wrap his arms around me. Everything in the world would be alright again. To my disappointment Taylor's car was driving through my gate. She parked her car.

I got out and walked over to her car. She got out. "Are you okay?" Taylor blurted out. "You never texted me back and I talked to Chad and he said Troy's phone was off or something. It kept going straight to voicemail. " She rambled, looking at me. "Gabi… What's going on?"

"We got into a big fight and Troy left after he broke up with me. I'm leaving for the airport whenever Katherine comes out of the house. My flight leaves at two." I said quietly, avoiding eye contact. "I'm going back to L.A."

"You can't go!" Taylor cried. I looked at her and the tears were filling up her eyes. I looked back down, feeling a lump rise in the throat. "You can't just leave us Gabi. I've never had a best friend like you. I can't let you leave. You're moving in with me." She said walking towards the house.

"Taylor, I think leaving would be best for me. If you have a weekend free then I can have you fly down. We'll still be friends. I just wont be here." I said quietly. "I'll miss you." I looked back at her as she was wiping her eyes.

She threw her arms around me, hugging me tightly. "I'll miss you too Gabi." I pulled away from her slowly. "I'll look after him. I'll make sure he doesn't do anything stupid." She said quietly.

"Have Zeke and Jason help too, since they're staying here. Keep him motivated. He can do amazing things. Don't let him do anything less. Promise?" I asked desperately.

She nodded. "Yes, I promise. You'll find your way back to each other. I know it." I hugged her again tightly.

"Gabriella, time to go." Katherine said from behind me.

I looked at Taylor. "I have to go. Call me anytime."

"You too, I'll take care of your boy. Don't worry." I wrapped my arms around Taylor again. "Bye Gabs."

"Bye Tay." I said quietly as I pulled away from her. I got in the back seat of the car and waved as we drove out of the gate.

We rode to the airport in silence. I closed my eyes and leaned my head back. My head was still pounding. We got to the airport and I put my suitcases on a luggage cart. I put my phone in my purse and threw it on my shoulder. I walked over to the luggage check in and handed them the suitcases. They handed me my ticket and I walked over to the flight board. My flight was on time so far.

"Do you want something to eat sweetheart?" Katherine asked me, I shook my head. "I'll order you something babe, what do you want to eat?"

"I'm not hungry." I said quietly.

She let out a sigh. "Okay. I'll get you a coffee then." She walked away from me. I sat down on a chair and pulled out my phone.

I dialed Troy's number, it went straight to voice mail. Taylor was right. I sighed, listening to the 'automated voice messaging system.' I told Troy a billion times to record a voice mail but he never did. I heard the beep. "Hey, Troy. It's me, Gabi. I just wanted to let you know I'm leaving. My flight leaves at two. So if you listen to this before then feel free to come. I love you, forever. Bye Troy." I hung up.

Katherine walked back holding two Starbucks cups. "I didn't know what to get you so I thought I would get you just plain coffee. I put some milk and sugar in it." She handed me a cup and I held it.

I looked at Katherine. "How do you know what boyfriend would be best for me if you don't even know what kind of drink I like?" I asked her quietly, partially rhetorically.

"oh honey that was just coffee, it has nothing to do with your future." She said taking a sip of her coffee. "I know plenty things about you babe. Ask me. Ask me anything."

"What is my favorite color? Where did I actually want to go to school? What is my favorite perfume?" I asked her, looking up at her. I took a sip of the coffee she made me. I made a face, it tasted bitter and black. Just like my mothers heart.

"Your favorite color is blue. You've always wanted to go to UCLA. And you like that one… from that one store." She said, looking up in thought.

"Orange, Stanford, Cherry blossom." I said quietly. "And I like white chocolate mochas, or anything with caramel. Dad knows that and he spends half the time you do with me." I looked at my blank phone. "I think I should go now." I said as I got up

"Gabriella, wait please." She said looking at me. I reluctantly sat back down and looked at her. "I just want to say I was just doing what I thought was best for you. Yesterday I thought what I did was best for Albuquerque Rocks. I sold it to the man from Arizona. He officially owns it starting August first." She said quietly. "I am going to send your stuff to your fathers house. I am moving to New York. I need a change of pace from the West Coast. You can visit anytime." She said with a slight smile.

I got up, putting my purse on my shoulder. "Fuck you Katherine. You are no longer my mother. I hate you. I hope you rot in hell. Don't even bother calling me. My life will be so much better without you. Goodbye." I hissed at her before walking over to the security gate.

She sold my fucking company. Why did you have to give me such a shitty mom, god? I walked through security and over to my flight terminal. I put my headphones in and listened to my Troy play list until my flight was called.

* * *

Once I landed I called a cab and went straight to my dads. I opened his liquor cabinet and grabbed the first bottle I saw. I opened the top and took a chug. I walked over the junk drawer and grabbed a pair of scissors. I walked over to the bathroom, taking another drink out of the bottle. I looked at myself in the mirror. I need a change. I sectioned out a part of my hair in the front and cut straight bangs across my forehead. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail. I braided the ends and cut the end off. I measured up three-quarters of my hair and cut it.

I left it on the sink and grabbed my bottle. I took a long drink before setting it down on the table. I slumped down on the couch. I took a deep breath before I screamed Troy's name. I moved my hands down my face before letting out another shrill scream. I got up and walked around the living room. I found a picture of me and Katherine and I threw it against the wall.

I took another drink before looking down at the bottle that was empty. I grabbed another bottle and started drinking. I blacked out for the first time and i came back to consciousness when I fell to the ground. I let out another scream. I screamed one last time before I burst into tears. I heard the door open and somebody rushed over to me. I closed my eyes and blacked out again.

"_Gabi… sweetheart?" A sweet voice asked in my ear. I knew that voice anywhere. My eyes shot open. I looked up to see Troy sitting next to me. "Baby, you were screaming. Are you alright?" He asked me, worriedly._

"_Oh Troy." I whimpered. I scrambled up and wrapped my arms around him. I buried my face in his neck._

"_It will be alright baby girl. Daddy's here." My father's voice rumbled up from the figure I was leaning up on._

_I pulled away and looked up at my father who's arms were wrapped around me. "Dad?" I croaked. "What happened to Troy?"_

"_Sh… Daddy's here." He repeated._

Beep. Beep. Beep. I opened my eyes. The walls were white and blank. I saw somebody to my left out of the corner of my eye. I let my eyes droop closed again. "Gabi?" A voice asked. It was daddy.

"Hello Mr. Montez. We just got the results back. Her alcohol level was way above the legal limit, so we proceeded to pump her stomach. She should be waking up soon. She might feel a little discomfort." Another voice said. "You're very lucky somebody found her when they did."

I heard footsteps before they disappeared. "Hello Katherine… What the hell did you do to my daughter?" My father yelled. I wiggled my toes, getting the feeling back in them. "After all of that? You sent her here?… YOU SOLD ALBUQUERQUE ROCKS?… That explains it… How is our daughter huh? She drank a whole bottle of Crown Royal. The cops were called by the neighbors because they heard yelling. They called Ruby because I was in a meeting. She found her passed out on the floor. She just had her stomach pumped and god who cut her hair?.. What do you mean her hair wasn't cut?"

I opened and closed my hands. I opened my eyes again and felt all the pain hit my body at once. I groaned loudly. "Dad?" I asked quietly.

"I don't- Katherine, she's waking up. I've got to go." I looked over at him and he put his phone down and walked over to me. "Gabi, baby you alright?"

I shook my head slowly. "Everything hurts." I said quietly. "I'm sorry." I felt my eyelids drooping.

He held my hand and kissed it. "It will be alright baby. Everything will be alright." He said quietly pushing my back my new bangs. "Don't worry about it, I'm just glad you're okay baby girl."

The hospital kept me over night. They instructed to keep me fed and closely monitored. Ruby stayed with me for the next couple of days. Dad had to work. Katherine kept calling me, leaving messages and texts. She called me at least 30 times in the past three days. I was getting fed up and thought thoroughly about changing my number. But I didn't.

I hadn't heard from Troy. I did hear from Taylor. She told me Troy threw his phone at the wall and broke it. He didn't know when he was getting a new one. I told her what happened with me and I had to beg her not to tell Troy. I sat in my room and heard a knock on the door. I walked out to see movers bringing in boxes from a small truck. I recognized my hand writing.

"Thank you for bringing these in." I said as I picked one up. I started carrying one up to my room. The men helped me carry all of my boxes up. I thanked them again before they left. I looked through the boxes and found the first one I packed. Photos.

I looked at the box confused. It looked like somebody opened it and taped it back up. I opened it and started putting things back in place. I grabbed the loose pictures at the bottom and looked through them. Many of Me and Bree and Me and Taylor. One of Taylor and Chad and One of all of us camping. I looked through them again. No Troy.

"My fucking mother." I said. I walked over to my phone. I picked it up. My phone started ringing. Katherine. "Hello?"

_"Oh, finally Gabriella. I've been trying to reach you for days. Your father told me about your little incident and I am very disappointed. You know I raised you better than that. You get drunk and cut all your gorgeous hair off. I haven't seen it but I'm sure it's horrendous."_ She started. She went off on a tangent. _"Anyways I raised you to act like a lady. You just broke up with your boyfriend. You can cry to your pillow and in your bedroom. When there are people around you suck it up. I'm sure he's over it by now."_

I closed my eyes, trying to calm my self down. "Katherine. Where are my pictures?" I asked calmly.

_"you packed them didn't you?"_ She asked me.

"Of course I packed them!" I yelled. "Why did you go through my things? Where are the rest of my pictures Katherine?"

_"Will you calm down? They are fine. You don't need to keep them around honey I did you a favor."_ She said.

I let out a frustrated breath. "Well do me a favor and send me the fucking pictures AND stop doing me favors Katherine." I hung up my phone and threw it on the couch.

I heard a knock on the door. I sighed and walked over to the door. "Hey Bitch Open up!" A small smile spread on my face.

I opened the door and saw my best friend Bree staring back at me. She squealed and jumped on me, almost knocking me over. "Bree!" I said quietly as I hugged her tightly.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be here earlier. Tia just took me to Magic Mountain. You know how I love me some roller coasters." She smiled at me, pulling back. "Besides nobody told me until I came home like an hour ago." She rolled her eyes. "So Why are you back? Tell me what's been going on."

I proceeded to tell her this weeks events. I told her almost everything that happened with Troy, sparing her some details. I told her about Katherine and how much I learned to despise her within 3 days. I told her everything. It was nice having best friend time. I missed her so much.

"Okay, so I'm just going to say it." Bree said, looking at me. I looked at her confused. "What the FUCK happened to your hair?" She said, turning me around. "You really need some damage control on your hair."

I rolled my eyes as she dragged me out of the house to the hair salon. Bree's hair lady made mine look decent, good enough for the time being. She evened out my bangs and the back of my hair which was about shoulder length. I hated to admit it but if I was a little bit darker I would look like fucking Dora the explorer. I hate my life.

Getting up the next day was as hard as it's been all week. Bree had to leave because her mom wanted to spend time with her. I looked over at my phone. A picture of Troy and I was still my background. My heart still ached for him. I found myself up late waiting for him to text me and tell me that he was waiting outside for me. I was in a while other state now. I had no idea what he was doing. I imagine he was working, maybe hanging out with Chad.

This whole summer has been one big crazy mess. From the first day at the carnival. Our first kiss at the lake. Our first time in his bed. The fucking tattoo on his arm. My belly ring. Countless hours in the middle of the night talking and hanging out. Camping. The moments without him were so much more bitter than what I expected them to be. That probably had to deal with the way it ended. I remember him driving away. I stood out in my drive way for a good twenty minutes before I realized he wasn't coming back. I closed my eyes and smoothed down my bangs.

My phone rang and I answered it without looking at the caller ID. "Hello?" I asked tiredly.

_"Hey Gabi, It's Taylor."_ I felt a lump rise in my throat. I missed Taylor, Chad and the gang. Hell I even missed Sharpay, even if we weren't the best of friends. _"How are you doing?"_

I swallowed the lump in my throat. "I'm fine. Same shit, different day." I sat up in my bed.

"_We miss you."_ Taylor said quietly. _"Me, Chad…. Troy." _

"I miss you guys too." I sighed. "I miss him, I didn't think it would be this hard." I whispered to her.

_"He threw himself into working. I've only seen him once since you left. He literally said two words to me."_ I felt the lump rise in my throat. _"He said he's getting a new phone soon."_

"I hope so…" I said quietly.

"_Yeah, grandma. I'm coming for Thanksgiving."_ Taylor said suddenly, changing her whole voice.

"What?" I asked.

_"Who's that?"_ I heard Chad in the background. _"Troy get me a soda."_

I froze. "He is there?" I asked frantically. "Can I talk to him?"

_"I don't know grandma. Dad just left."_ She said changing her voice around. _"It's Gabi, Chad."_ She hissed.

_"Hi Gabi."_ Chad whispered into the phone. _"It's nice to talk to you too Grandma Kessie."_ He said his voice changing too.

"You guys are assholes." I said, sighing.

_"Well what am I supposed to do Grandma?"_ Taylor asked.

"WELL STOP CALLING ME GRANDMA." I yelled back at her.

_"Guys, I don't feel good. I'm going to go."_ I heard Troy's sweet voice say. _"I'll see you later."_

_"No Troy wait."_ I heard Chad say before a door close.

I let out a sob. "I'm going to go Taylor. I'll talk to you later." I sniffled before I hung up.

I dropped my phone on my bed and pulled my knees up to my chest. I let out harsh sobs. My tear ducts obviously had enough rest. I wiped my tears but they continued to fall. I looked up to see Ruby standing in the door way. She walked over to me and wrapped her arms around me tightly. She was a better mother than Katherine will ever be.

* * *

_"Powder your nose,_  
_Paint your toes,_  
_Line your lips and keep them closed._  
_Cross your legs,_  
_Dot your I's_  
_Never let them see you cry."  
_  
-Miranda Lambert

* * *

**Don't forget to review :)**


	28. Lizzy Gabrielle

**Gabriella's POV**

I started school as planned in September. My hair was starting to grow again, it looked much better than it did before. I hadn't talked to Katherine since we last spoke at the beginning of August. I hadn't spoken to Troy since I left. His phone number got disconnected and I hadn't talked to Taylor either.

I sighed as I walked into my English class. I sat in my normal seat. "Hey Gabi." I closed my eyes. Patrick Howard. Since school started a month ago he has been trying to ask me out. I was running out of excuses. Yes, he was cute. I just wasn't ready for a relationship.

"Hey Patrick." I said quietly. I looked at my phone. I finally changed the wallpaper to a picture of Bella when I first got her.

Patrick plopped down next to me, knocking me with his elbows. "Is that your dog? I've always wanted a bulldog." He picked up my phone, looking at it closer.

I grabbed my phone and put it in my purse. "Yes it's my dog. It's back in Albuquerque with my Mother." I lied. I didn't feel like talking today. It had been a rough night last night.

"That's too bad. What are you doing later? Do you want to go out for lunch?" He asked me. I shook my head. "Why not Gabi?"

I looked over at him. He usually just took my rejection and kept talking. This is the first time asking me why. It surprised me. "Well… I just got out of a serious relationship and I am mentally unstable for a new relationship. So I kept making excuses every time you asked me out because I felt bad for rejecting you but it's kind of getting on my nerves now and I'm sorry. You're very nice but I don't want to go out with you."

He raised his eyebrows at me. "That is the most I've heard you talk since we've met."

I shrugged. "I don't have much to say anymore." I turned my attention to my professor who just walked in and settled down.

My last class of the day was Algebra. I don't know why they had me taking algebra. I passed Honors Algebra in high school with flying colors. This was pretty much review and a waste of my time. I made an excuse and left early. I walked over to my car. Dad bought me a new car once I got my California license. It was a brand new Audi. Black. Very expensive.

The first thing I did when I got in the car was find the country station and set it on my presets. I unlocked it and got in. I started driving home, I turned up the radio. Once I got home I got changed into Troy's shirt and pulled out my homework on my bed. I sniffed my shirt and sighed. It didn't smell like him anymore.

* * *

**3 years later.**

I walked into my house after my last final of my third year in college. I only had one more until I graduate. I am planning on heading up to Stanford to get my masters, maybe a doctorate in Psychology. I haven't been in contact with Katherine in the time being. She fell off the face of the earth and I was glad. Taylor told me Troy was doing well at ACC, he got to play for U of A. I supposed he was there now. I hadn't talked to Taylor in a while.

I got an internship at a therapists office, doing paper work and what not. I also had a job. I worked at Starbucks. My ADHD calmed down. I can sleep through the night without crying myself to sleep. I wouldn't say I'm completely healed, I don't think I ever will be. I grew out my bangs but kept my hair short. I was too busy to even think about him most days. I'm going to start working 12 hour shifts at work. I technically didn't have to work but I needed something to occupy my time.

I got ready for work quickly then left my house. Finals always stressed me out but work was actually fun. I couldn't wait to get there. I got there and parked my Audi. I walked in the back and waited until work started.

"Hey Gabi." Patrick Howard said. I finally gave him a date after a year but nothing serious ever happened. We decided to stay friends. "How was finals? Mine were brutal yesterday." He said, getting some coffee from one of the packages in the back. He actually got me this job.

"Mine sucked, I'm so glad they're over." I smiled at him, digging my water bottle out of my purse. I took a drink. "Hey, is your cousin still coming?"

"He got here yesterday. I think he's coming down today. He just graduated from NYU. He's trying to make it big so he came here." Patrick said chuckling. "I told him so is everybody else."

"You got that right." I said laughing. "I should clock in, I'll see you out there." I put my purse away and clocked in. I put my apron on and walked out to the lobby and started cleaning up the tables.

I've been at work for 3 hours, it was almost time for my lunch. Business was slow. Patrick and I were talking about a professor we both had last year. "She was not hot Pat. She looked like a reject model who settled for teaching." I told him.

He shook his head. "No she did not. She was probably a porn star, not a model." He joked. We both started laughing. The door opened and a man walked in. He had short black hair and brown eyes. He was very attractive. We both turned out attention to the man. "Zander Fucking Howard." Patrick said from next to me. He hopped over the counter and gave the man a big hug.

"Hey cousin, Work looks booming." The man said looking around. "Who is your beautiful coworker?"

I felt a slight blush creep on my cheeks. "I'm Gabriella Montez, it's nice to meet you."

"Patrick you didn't tell you that you were friends with John Montez's daughter." He walked over to the counter and gave my hand a kiss. "It is an honor to meet you."

I laughed. "You're making it sound like I am royalty or something. Incase you hadn't noticed I work at Starbucks." I retorted, pulling my hand out of his grip. "But it's nice to meet you…"

"Zander Howard, the next Zac Efron." He gloated looking at me. He winked.

I laughed out loud and walked into the back. "I'm taking my lunch." I took my apron off and opened my locker. I pulled out my purse and stuffed my dirty apron in there. I clocked out before I walked out into the lobby.

"Gabriella, I was just kidding about the whole Zac Efron thing." Zander said, much more calmly. He smiled at me. I had to admit his perfect teeth were very attractive. "Can I buy you lunch?" He offered.

"No thank you," I said with a smile.

"It took me a year to get her to go on a date with me, so you're going to have to try much harder than that Zan." Patrick said from the counter.

I nodded. "It's true." I walked passed him and to my car. I got some food and parked my car under some shade. I ate my food listening to the radio.

_"Worked all week._  
_Cleaned up, clean cut and clean shaved._  
_Got the cover off the '68,_  
_I fired it up and let the horses sang._  
_A little pretty thang,_  
_Little tan legged Georgia Dream_  
_She's rockin them holy jeans,_  
_Baby, what you got goin on Saturday?_  
_Words got it, there's gunna be a party."_

I shut off the radio feeling the familiar pang in my chest. I closed my eyes and sat back in my car. I let out a breath and continued eating. I wish I could be okay again.

Zander came in everyday for 3 weeks to ask me out on a date. I finally caved in and he took me to sushi. I wasn't a big seafood fan but he loved it so I decided to try it. I learned that his big headedness was not just an act. He really thought he was amazing. I was annoying at first but I guess I got used to it. We decided we would be friends first and if we felt any differently then we would act on it.

"Hello?" I answered my phone. It was the end of summer. School was almost coming back but we had a good two weeks before.

_"Hey ass hole, thanks for calling me back last night."_ Bree said into the phone. "_Anyways.. I need to get out of here. We need to take a trip. Let's go to Disney World."_

I thought about it for a second. "I'll talk to Dad. Where's Rob?" Rob was her new boyfriend of 3 months. He was practically a professional body builder. He was huge compared to Bree. He lived with his best friend Seth. We hung out all the time. Bree tried to get me to go out with Seth.

_"He and Seth have a compition in Washington or somewhere like that. We should go for a week. Get drunk and go."_ She laughed at herself. "_I'm just kidding, but seriously, talk to love muffin."_

I smiled to myself. "Alright I will."

_"We definitely need some major BFF time."_ Bree said with a sigh. _"You should see if Taylor or something wants to come. I haven't seen her in forev's."_

I laughed. "I'll call her to see if she'll come down." I heard the door open. "I think daddy just got home I'm going to go talk to him."

_"Alright, Love you bye."_ She said.

"Love you too, bye." I said hanging up. I walked into the living room to see dad taking off his tie. "Hey daddy, you look handsome." I winked at him.

He chuckled at me. "Hey Gabi, what can I do for you?"

"Bree and I want to go to Disney World. Do you want to come with?" I asked, smiling at him. "You could use a vacation." I suggested. "And Taylor might come, I still have to call her."

"We'll see Gabi. You have your own money, you can buy yourself a plane ticket." Dad said , chuckling at me.

"You know I'm saving up for when I have to pay off my shitty loans." I said, sighing. I hated borrowing money that I had to pay back. "Especially if I want to go to Stanford."

"I'm glad you have your head on straight. You know I will help you." Dad said, sitting on the couch.

I smiled at him. "I'll talk to you later, I'm going to go call Taylor." I giggled and walked away from my dad.

I pulled out my phone and called Taylor. _"Hello?"_ She answered.

"Hi, Tay!" I said, giggling. "How have you been?"

_"Gabriella Montez? Is that you? I haven't heard your laugh in like three years."_ I smiled. _"What's up girl?"_

"I wanted to know if you were free this week? Bree and I wanted to go down to Florida. Go to Disney World, Bum on the beach. Do something. What do you say?" I asked hopefully.

_"That sounds like fun let me know the details. I'm down."_ She said giggling. _"Oh, wait. Chad is supposed to come up."_

"He can come to!" I said giggling. "I miss Chad."

_"I'll tell him you said that."_ Taylor giggled. "_I have to go. Call me soon 'kay?"_

"Love you Bye!" I said, hanging up. I walked back into the living room. Daddy was snoring on the couch. I kissed his forehead and walked back into my room.

We got everything set up for our trip. Taylor and Chad were able to make it. We were meeting up in Florida. We were in the air now. Bree was passed out beside me. I was listening to my Troy play list. Even though its been years its nice to know some things never change.

I put on Bree's seat belt since we were about to land. I looked out the window as we got closer and closer towards the ground. I love airplanes and I love flying. If I had the balls, I could be a flight attendant. I turned off my iPod and put it in my purse.

We finally landed and I shook Bree to wake her up. "Bree, we landed, wake up."

She groaned from beside me. "But I'm tired."

"Oh well." I flicked her cheek and she smacked me. "Ow!" I yelled looking at her.

She started laughing. "My bad."

I rolled my eyes and unbuckled my seatbelt. I picked up my purse. Bree went out before me, grabbing my hand and leading me out. "I'm hungry." I said as we walked through the tunnel. "My legs feel like Jell-o."

"Oh.. Jell-O Shots." Bree said dreamily.

"Alright Drunkie." I rolled my eyes as we walked out of the tunnel. I looked out and saw a bushy head of hair. "CHAD!" I yelled and ran over to him.

Chad turned around just as I jumped on him, hugging him tightly. "Gabi!" He set me down and let me go.

"TAY!" I wrapped my arms around her tightly. "I missed you guys so much" I said, pulling them both into another hug.

Chad laughed. "We missed you too Gabi." He pulled away. "Hey Bree, long time no see."

"Hey Chad." She smiled. 'Oh, god, the last time you saw me…. I was drunk off my ass at Gabi's house in New Mexico. Wasn't the best time." Bree said laughing.

"Yeah, at Gabi's Grad party. That was one hell of a party." Taylor said laughing,.

I nodded silently. "It was a crazy party." I forced a smile then changed the subject. "When did you guys get here?"

"I got here like 15 minutes ago." Chad said.

"I got off the plane five minutes ago." Taylor said. "We still need to get our luggage."

"Oh duh, Come on." I started walking toward the baggage claim. "How's school Chad?"

"Good, I'm getting offers from the NBA. I think I'm going to take it after I graduate next year." Chad said.

I smiled at him. "I'm so proud of you Chad! I want one of your jerseys, even though I don't watch basketball and avoid ESPN at all costs." I giggled quietly.

"I want one too!" Bree said. "I watch basketball, sometimes." She laughed. "Well only if my dad watches it. Or my boyfriend."

"Speaking of Boyfriends, Gabi are you seeing anybody?" Taylor asked me raising her eyebrows.

I shook my head. "No." I said quietly.

"Why not?" Chad asked.

I shrugged. "I'm not really interested in anybody in LA." I said quietly.

"Are you guys still together?" Bree asked.

Chad nodded. "Yep, Three years now." He hugged his arm around Taylor.

I smiled at them "I'm happy for you guys." I walked away to the baggage claim and waited for my suitcase to come out. Taylor and Chad waited for their luggage too.

"You are right booboo?" Bree asked, hugging her arms around my neck.

"I'm alright." I said, looking over at her. "I just want to relax, not have to worry about anything."

"We will be at the beach soon, I promise." Bree said, pulling away from me. "If its not hot as fuck outside."

I laughed. "Alright. I guess we'll see."

Chad and Taylor made their way over to us. When ours came around I pulled them off for us. We walked over to the rental car area. I got a rental car and we drove to the hotel. We checked in and I laid on my bed. "I'm still on California time." Bree said, looking at me from the couch she was sitting on.

"I know, it's weird huh?" I said, looking up at the ceiling. "Do you think he thinks of me as much as I think of him?" I asked quietly.

"Of course he does." Bree said looking over at me. "I bet he thinks about you everyday. Gabi you are infectious."

I gave her a small smile. "Maybe…" I said quietly. "How hot is it outside? Do you know?"

"Like 90 something. Plus humidity. So we will be sweating our dicks off." Bree said getting up. "Come on. Get your bathing suit on." She walked over to her suitcase pulling her bathing suit out. I looked at it.

"Alrighty." I said getting up. I pulled out my bathing suit and changed. I pulled on some shorts on and a tank top. "I'll go get Taylor and Chad."

"Okay." Bree yelled from the bathroom.

I walked across the hall and knocked on the door. Taylor opened it. "Come in." I walked inside and sat on the couch in their room. "Do you guys wanna go to the beach. Bree and I were going to go scope it out."

"Yeah, sure." Chad's phone started ringing. "Hold on." He picked up his phone. "Hello?… What's up man?… No man, I was going to go see Tay but we decided to go to Florida… I know. Maybe you can come with us next time… You home?.. Say hi to your mom and dad for me"

I watched Chad as he talked on the phone. "Are you in Taylor?" I asked, looking at Chad still.

"Yeah, I'm just going to go get dressed." Taylor said.

"Oh I'll get Bree." I said walked towards the door.

"How's Lizzy Gabrielle?.. That's good… Dang… Alright, well I'm heading out to the beach." I opened the door to walk out. "I'll talk to you later Troy." I froze in the door way. "Talktoyoulaterbye." Chad rushed his last words before he hung up the phone. "Gabi." He called after me. I walked out of the door and closed it. I walked back to the room.

Who is Lizzy Gabrielle? I felt my heart squeeze in my chest. I took a couple of deep breaths. I think I was having an anxiety attack. I opened the door and walked into my room. I walked over to my bed and sat down. My mind was racing.

"Gabs, you alright? You look a little pale." Bree asked, putting earrings in her ears. She looked at me.

I nodded furiously. "Yeah," I gasped out. "I think I have low blood sugar or something."

She looked at me skeptically and walked away slowly. "Alright, I guess."

I got up and grabbed a snickers bar and shoved it down my throat. God Damn Troy. I pulled out a bottle of water and chugged it. I heard noise from the other side of the door. I stepped closer to it. "Chad you are a fucking idiot!" That was Taylor.

I opened the package of peanut butter cups and put one in my mouth. This candy was probably 3 dollars a pop but I didn't care. I needed something. I needed a beer or something. I swore off drinking after the incident when I first got to LA. I can't even smell Crown, just the smell makes me dry heave. I did not want to cut all my hair off again. God no. I heard a knock at the door. I walked over and opened it.

Taylor and Chad came in. I smiled with my mouth closed. I had a mouth full of peanut butter cup. "Gabi…" Chad started.

I forced another smile and shook my head. "Sorry, I had peanut butter cup in my mouth. But whatever you say it's fine. I don't want to talk about it."

"Lizzy Gabrielle is Troy's sister." Chad said. I looked at him confused. "I guess a little before you left Lucy found out she was pregnant. She had Lizzy in the middle of January. She's beautiful. Troy loves her so much. Her full name is Elizabeth Gabrielle Bolton. Gabrielle after you." Chad said, looking up at me. "Lucy insisted."

I bit my bottom lip as the tears welled in my eyes. I tried to swallow the lump in my throat. I felt so, so stupid. I opened the peanut butter cup wrapper and peeled off the black wrapper at the bottom. I shoved it in my mouth and threw the wrappers away.

"Okay, Are we ready to go?" Bree asked walking out of the bathroom, oblivious to everything that just went on.

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	29. nice distractions

**Troy's POV**

"Troy, it's time." Mom yelled from down stairs. She was nine months pregnant, on maternity leave. I was at school this morning but I had the rest of the day off. I walked downstairs.

"Time for what?" I asked.

She was clutching her pregnant belly. "The baby is coming!" My mom gasped out. "You need to call your dad now."

I stood there frozen for a second. I'm 19 years old I don't know how to handle a woman in labor! I ran upstairs and grabbed her bags. I picked up the house phone in my parents room and called my dad. "Baby is coming!" I yelled into the phone before hanging up.

I ran downstairs and I helped my mom into her car. "God damn your father better be on his fucking way." I turned on the car and drove quickly to the hospital. Once we got there I helped her out. I grabbed her a wheel chair and she sat down. I ran to the car and got her bags. I pushed her in the hospital. I got the chills once I walked in. I hate hospitals.

The nurses took my mom and I sat in the waiting room waiting for Dad. I looked down at my clothes, my eyes moved to the tattoo on my arm. Gabriella. I let out a sigh. I hadn't talked to her since I broke up with her. Taylor told me she made it back to LA safely and she's in school. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't miss her. Everything about Albuquerque reminded me of her. School and work are nice distractions. Now the baby is coming so it is going to be a nice distraction too.

Mom and Dad didn't want to find out what they were having. They wanted it to be a surprise. It was driving me crazy wondering what it would me. Would I have a brother or a sister? They already picked out names though, Noah for a boy and Elizabeth for a girl. Dad came up with the first names. Mom was going to decide the middle name. She wanted to wait until it was born to tell us. Mom prayed for a little girl. Dad didn't really mind. Neither did I. I just wanted to be the best big brother I could be. Since we are almost 20 years apart.

"Where is she? Did she have the baby?" Dad came rushing in. He was dirty. He still worked at Albuquerque Rocks. Gabi's mom sold it off to some guy named Doug from Arizona. Doug is nice, he and my father get along great. I can imagine Gabriella being royally pissed off at her mom. Katherine deserved it though. I drove by her house the other day. There was a for sale sign on the gate. She was really gone. "Troy?" Dad said snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Sorry, I was distracted… No we got here about 10 minutes ago." I explained to him. "A nurse was going to come and get us when it was okay."

"Oh, alright." Dad said, sitting next to me. "God, I remember when you and Emma were born. I was just as nervous as I am now."

I looked over at dad who couldn't sit still. "What do you want it to be? Honestly, Boy or Girl?"

"Girl, Your mom always wanted a daughter. After Emma passed I don't think she would even want to have another baby. Then Gabriella came along. You mom loved her like she was her own, they had a weird girl bond. You know?" He asked I nodded. "As if it was fate she got pregnant. She's really excited even though its been a long time since we had a baby in the house. "

I scoffed. "Yeah, fourteen years." I mumbled looking over at my dad. "I bet she would have been a basketball star. Grown up to be a doctor and save the world." I told him quietly. "But I guess God wanted to keep her for himself, she would never have to go through hell on earth.. Or Heartbreak. I wouldn't have to beat some asshole up who got feely with my little sister. She's somewhere way better than here." I said quietly.

Dad put my hand on the back of my neck and pulled me in. "You're right son." He said, giving me a hug. "But now you have to fulfill your big brother duties for this little one. I think you are going to be more over protective than I am." Dad said chuckling.

I cracked a smile. "Yeah, probably."

A nurse came and got us a couple minutes later. We walked into the room and mom was fast asleep. The nurse said she was dilated to 3 and had a long way to go. I borrowed my dad's phone and walked out into the hallway. I didn't know who to call, so I called Chad.

_"Hello?"_ He answered.

"Hey man, it's Troy." I said. "I'm on my dad's phone. I haven't got one yet."

Chad chuckled. _"It's been months man, what's goin' on?"_

"Mom is going to have the baby. I'm at the hospital right now. You know how much I hate hospitals." I said quietly. "I'm nervous."

_"Why don't you just call her? I've been telling you for months now."_ Chad said. I closed my mouth. _"I know you don't want to talk to me. You want to talk to her, so call her Troy."_

I sighed. "I can't. She probably wouldn't answer anyway." I bit my bottom lip. "I tried calling her once, I let it ring once and I hung up. I couldn't do it. Besides, she probably hates me."

_"Stop making excuses Troy. She couldn't hate you if you chopped all her fingers off."_ Chad said.

I made a face. "Why would I chop all her fingers off?" I asked him.

Chad groaned in frustration. _"That's not the point Troy. I have practice, call me when little Bolton is born. "_

"Alright, thanks anyway Chad." I said hanging up. I walked back into the room.

Once Mom was ready they gave her an epidural. She hates needles so I don't know why she'd want a large one poked in her back. Child birth was a complete mystery to me. Mom was hopped up on pain relievers, she took another nap. I sat in the room, waiting patiently.

"Troy, you could go home." Dad offered.

I shook my head. "Nope, I missed my sisters birth. I'm not missing this one."

Dad chuckled. "You were five."

I shrugged. "So, I want to be a part of it. I want to… well I don't want to see it come out, but you know what I mean."

Dad laughed at me and shook his head. "I know what you mean."

I rolled my eyes and walked down to the cafeteria to get something to eat. I got feeling of Déjà vu. I sighed. Gabriella. I handed her flowers for her Grandpa in this cafeteria. I got some food, getting out of the cafeteria as soon as possible. I sat on a bench outside and ate my food in peace.

A couple hours later they said my mom would be ready to push. I stood closer toward her head, holding her hand. It felt like one big blur as she gripped my hand and bared down. It seemed like an eternity later a shrill cry rang through the air. I glanced at the little bloody baby the doctor was holding.

"Congrats, it's a healthy little girl." The doctor said putting the baby on my mothers chest.

Mom burst out in sobs, gently stroking the crying baby's head. "Hi beautiful girl." She cooed to my new baby sister. "Mama's here."

The nurse carefully took her off my mom. I watched as they weighed and measured her. She definitely was beautiful. She had moms light hair and Dad's blue eyes. She stopped crying once they swaddled her up in the blanket. She looked up at me curiously before blinking a couple times.

"Do you want to hold your sister?" A nurse asked me.

I looked at the nurse then back at my sister. "I- I don't know." I stuttered. "I don't want to hurt her."

The nurse smiled. "You wont hurt her, you just have to support her head." She picked up the baby. "Put your arms like this." She instructed. I did as she said and she placed the seemingly weightless baby in my arms.

"She's so small!" I said, looking down at my little sister. "She's beautiful mom." I said walking over to her slowly.

"Look at my babies." Mom said, wiping her tears. "My little Liz." The nurses took the baby to run some tests. They doctors cleaned my mom up. Once mom got cleaned up she looked over at me. "How are you baby?"

I looked over at my mom. "I'm alright. I'm happy that the baby is healthy and perfect." I said looking at her. "Did you decide on a name?"

She nodded and bit her lip. "I did, but I want to make sure you are okay with it. I don't want it to be weird or anything." She looked over at me. "I want her name to be Elizabeth Gabrielle" My body tensed. "After Gabriella, She was apart of all of our lives." Mom said quietly.

I sighed and thought about it for a minute. "She is your baby, I can't really say anything." Mom looked away from me. "Elizabeth Gabrielle is a beautiful name." Mom looked back at me and smiled. I smiled weakly at her. "You did a good job mom." I kissed her forehead before sitting back down.

"Thanks baby. I can tell you and Liz are going to be close." She said, laying her head back.

"What was Emma's middle name?" I asked quietly.

Mom looked over at me. "Lynn. After Chad's mom." I smiled at her. She laughed quietly. "I guess I like naming my kids after people."

"Does Lynn know?" I asked her.

Mom nodded. "Yeah, she was very flattered."

I chuckled. "I bet." I was quiet for a minute. Mom was looking over at me. "Well Emma Lynn would be very proud of you mom."

She smiled at me. "Thanks baby." She said sleepily. She fell asleep and I sat in the room for a little while longer. The nurses came back with Liz and my dad was holding her for a little while.

"You were even smaller then her Troy." Dad said, looking up from the baby. "You were 5 pounds, 10 ounces. Emma was 6 pounds even. Now Liz is 7 pounds 5 ounces."

"I was five pounds, really?" I asked.

Dad nodded. "You were a couple weeks pre-mature. You're mom was a stick in high school. When you were about to be born her stomach looked like it was going to pop." I raised my eyebrows, I didn't know all of this. "But even though you were a little small, you were perfectly healthy."

"I didn't know that. What about Emma? Was she born early too?" I asked curiously.

Dad shook his head. "Ironically she was late, but only by a couple of days."

I nodded. "Interesting, Are you happy dad? That she's a girl?"

Dad looked at me and smiled. "Yeah, I am. She's perfect."

"Me too." I admitted quietly. "Her name though…"

"Does her name make you uncomfortable?" Dad asked me.

I shook my head. "Not uncomfortable. It's just…. Something else to remind me of her in this town." Dad looked at me and I shrugged. "It's fine."

"Do you want to hold her? I'm going to get us something to eat." Dad said walking over to me.

"Yeah, sure." I said, I held out my arms and he put Liz in my arms. Dad walked out of the door and I looked down at my baby sister. "Hey Liz, I'm your big brother Troy. I will always be here for you. Just a word of advice. Never fall in love Lizzy Getting your heart ripped out is the worst feeling in the world. If anybody hurts you I will personally beat them up. I promise." I kissed her head gently.

* * *

The first year with Liz in the house was difficult. She kept my parents and I up most nights. She was a very cranky baby or just nocturnal. We took turns taking care of her. I was like a third parent. She definitely kept my hands full along with School, work, and Basketball. I loved being busy. When I wasn't I found myself thinking about Gabriella.

I often wondered what she was doing, if she missed me like I missed her. I wondered if she hated me. I knew Taylor kept up with her. Taylor was away at school and so was Chad. They were still together and of course they talked about me about Gabi. Chad told me some things that Taylor told him but I tried not to talk about her. It hurt too much.

I was finishing my second year at ACC. I was excelling at basketball, basketball was easy and fun. School was a little hard to manage especially with basketball and work. How I managed to get a 3.8 GPA in college was beyond me. I decided I would go to U of A after ACC. I've already talked to the coaches, they wanted me, badly.

I would sometimes go and work out with them if I had time. I still worked at Murray's. Julie and I became good friends, it was nice to have somebody to talk to at work. She brought up Gabriella sometimes but I usually didn't say much about her.

I cut back on my work hours so I could help take care of Elizabeth. Dad took my truck to work on days I had to watch her. He said it wasn't safe for an infant. So I used his car. I decided to take a little visit to my work on my day off. Then I'd take Liz to go to the park or something.

I put the 13 month old in the car. I made sure I had everything for her. It was March so it was a little cold outside. I buckled her in and got in the car.

"Toy!" Liz squealed from the back seat. "Toy, Go!"

I chuckled. Liz couldn't say much so I'm assuming Toy meant Troy. "Where do you want to go Liz?" I asked the little girl.

She gurgled and kicked her feet. I drove her to Murray's and parked the car in one of the front spots. I took Liz out of her car seat and carried her in. We would only be in there for a little bit. I opened the door and walked inside. "Hey, Vic is Julie here today?" I asked one of the hosts Victoria. She used to be a waiter but she liked hosting better.

"Yeah, do you want to get a table in her section?" Vic asked, picking up a menu.

"You know what? Sure. I could use some dessert or something. Can you get a high chair for Liz?" I asked.

Vic nodded. "Sure, she is so cute."

I chuckled. "I know, she looks just like me." Vic rolled her eyes and walked away. She came back with a chair for Liz and walked me to a small table. I put Liz in the chair and sat next to her. "Do you want some juice Liz?"

"Yes!" She said smacking the table.

I saw Julie walking over to me. She saw me and groaned. "Ugh, Bolton. I get enough of you when you work, now I have to see you on your day off?" She joked.

I chuckled. "Liz and I just wanted to say hello. Lizzy can you say hi?" I asked the little girl

"Hi!" She said waving to Julie.

Julie smiled. "Hi cutie pie." She replies, putting her hand on Liz's blond curls. "Welcome to Murray's can I get you anything to drink?" Julie asked in her waitress voice.

"I want a Dr. Pepper and this little lady will have some juice, please." I said, opening the menu.

Julie laughed. "Coming right up."

I looked at the menu. "Are you hungry Liz?" I asked her. she shook her head, no.

"What should brother get?" I asked her, not that she was going to answer. "I think I want some ice cream, how does that sound?" I asked Liz.

She squealed looking at me. I chuckled as Julie walked back with our drinks. "Here you go" Julie said, putting the juice in front of Liz. "Are you going to order anything?"

"A sundae will be nice." I said, giving her a cheesy grin. I handed her my menu and she rolled her eyes at me.

"Coming right up." Julie said walking away.

I looked over at my little sister who was drinking her juice from a straw. "Is that good juice?" I asked her.

She nodded. "uce." She said, putting it down and letting out a sigh.

I chuckled. "You are something else, Lizzy Gabrielle."

After I got my sundae and shared it with Liz, we left to go to the park. I put Liz on a swing and started pushing her. She was giggling like crazy. She always loved swings. It was the only thing that would calm her down when she was being fussy.

"Is this your daughter?" Somebody asked from behind me.

I turned around and saw a lady standing behind me. "Excuse me?"

The lady smiled at me. "Sorry, I was wondering if this little one was your daughter."

"Oh." I chuckled. "No, This is my little sister."

"She is so cute. She looks just like you." The lady said walking over to me.

I nodded. "She does. We look like our Dad, his blue eyes are very genetically strong I could say."

"They are gorgeous." She smiled at me. "I'm Candice." She held out her hand.

"Troy." I said shaking it, before going back to pushing Liz.

"You from around here?" She asked looking at me.

"Lived here all my life." I said, as I stopped pushing.

"I just moved here for Arizona. I go to U of A." She said, putting her hands in her pockets. "I guess I should go now."

"Maybe I'll see you around. I'm going to U of A starting in the fall." I said, pulling Liz out of the swing.

Candice smiled at me. "Maybe." She walked away, glancing back at me.

I walked over to the play structure and we went down the slide together. "Gan! Gan!" She said giggling. We climbed up the play structure and slid down again.

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	30. Sweet little Deja Vu

**Hey guys! I'm back! My dad got back safely and got me a sweatshirt from Maryland. Its one of those good ones thats very soft are my favorite. :) When i was on my little break, i played Sims 3 Pets on my XBox in my free time. lol. normally i would be writing but i played video games instead. i'm very productive right? Anyways. Its good to be back! I missed you guys. Thank you for understanding my little break and thank you for all the nice reviews. You guys are awesome. I love you guys. :)**

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_"Like that storm, the days roll by._  
_Now and then i still drive_  
_across the dam in my old ford._  
_I get out and walk that shore._  
_I could still see you standin' there,_  
_blue jeans too wet to wear_  
_hair all drenched and out of place,_  
_mascara runnin down your face._

_Everytime the clouds get low_  
_And the siren starts to blow,_  
_I get a sweet little Deja vu._  
_My thunderbird, me, and you,_  
_and kissin in the rain  
kissin in the rain..."_

-Toby Keith

* * *

**Troy's POV**

_"Hello Mr. Bolton, This is the head coach of the Chicago Bulls and We were wondering if you would like to play for us next season"_ My eyes bulged out of my head. _"Please call us and well set up a meeting."_

My mom squealed. "Troy, this is fantastic!" I pressed end as I finished listening to the voice mail I had on speaker phone. I wrapped my arms around her. I couldn't believe it. I just graduated from U of A, literally. Two days ago! Now I'm getting scouted. This is crazy.

"You have to call them back!" Dad said, holding Liz who was now four, in his hands.

"Call them! Call Troy!" Liz said wiggling out of his arms. Dad set Liz down. "Get your phone and call them!" She said looking at me.

I chuckled. "I will Liz, later." I picked her up and threw her in the air. She screamed and I caught her. "Isn't it your bedtime Elizabeth?"

She nodded. "But I'm not tired though. I might be if you tell me a story." She smiled innocently. Liz definitely had the Bolton Charm.

"I'll put her to bed and tell her a story." I offered, putting my little sister over my shoulder. "I'll be right back to talk to you guys." I walked Liz to her room, which was Emma's room, across the hall from mine. I set her down in her princess bed and sat on the floor next to her. "What kind of story do you want to hear today?"

She pulled the covers up and laid on her side to look at me. "I want to hear the one about Princess Gabi. Can you tell me that one again? That one is my favorite." Liz yawned before looking at me intently.

I gave her a soft smile. "That one is my favorite too." I told her about Gabi but she was too young to understand. Maybe one day she will. "There once was a princess named Gabi. She lived in a kingdom far away in California. She was a very beautiful girl. She had long brown curly hair and chocolate brown eyes. She was amazing at everything she did. She was also very, very smart. One day her evil step mother made her move from California into the desert. But in the desert she met a boy named Ray."

"Wait!" Liz interrupted. "I thought his name was Roy."

"Oh, right of course. She met a boy named Roy. They instantly became friends. They hung out everyday. They went fishing and swimming and went everywhere. One day, Roy finally asked Gabi if she would be his girlfriend. She said yes. He couldn't have been any happier. One night they were sitting in his carriage and she kissed him on the lips." I made a smacking sound. She giggled quietly. I smiled at continued. "Even though they were so happy Gabi's Evil step mother didn't like Roy. She did everything to keep them apart."

Liz gasped dramatically. "Uh oh.."

I nodded. "Uh oh is right. Gabi's evil step mom said that if you see Roy then you will never be queen! But Gabi loved Roy and Roy loved Gabi with all his heart. They still saw each other behind the evil step moms back. But one day they got caught. Evil step mom sent Princess Gabi back to her kingdom in California. Roy was heart broken. He wanted to see Gabi but he couldn't His carriage wouldn't make it that far. So he decided he would have to wait. He staked his own kingdom and he asked The king of California if he could Marry Princess Gabi. King Roy and Queen Gabi got married and lived happily ever after. The end." I looked down to see a sleeping Liz. I leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Goodnight Lizzy." I said quietly keeping her door partially open.

I walked down the stairs and saw mom and dad on the couch talking. They turned their attention to me when they saw me sat down. "Is she asleep?" Mom asked looking at me.

"Yeah, she's fast asleep." I said , sitting back. I stifled a yawn. "I told her the Gabi story."

My mom gave me a small smile. "That one is her favorite."

"I know." I said quietly. "Do you think I should take the offer?" I looked from my mom to my dad.

Dad smiled at me. "You know I think you should, but it's ultimately up to you son."

I let out a sigh. "Alright. I'll sleep on it and let you know in the morning."

"Alright honey, goodnight." Mom said, sitting back on the couch.

"Night." I said quietly walking back upstairs. I checked on Liz before walking into my room.

My room hadn't changed much in the last four years. I took one day to clean everything out. changing it from a boy's room to a man's room. It was simple and that's good enough for me. I was sleeping through the night now. I still had some insomnia spells, especially during the summer time. I thought about Gabriella Montez a lot, during the summer. I would go down to the lake and imagine her everywhere. I hallucinated seeing her there a lot.

Sometimes she would be in the water, looking up at me waiting for me to dive in after her. She would be sitting next to me on the boat looking out into the water. Sometimes I was crazy enough to hear her voice in my head or the wind that sounded just like her laugh.

I had to get a new tent. Every time I went in my old one she'd be there, curled up in a ball. I felt like I was going crazy every time I was at the lake. But my favorite hallucination of her is when I'm sitting on the tailgate of my truck and I see her dancing in the rain. Her wet clothes clinging tightly to her body. Her mascara running down her face. Her hair in a tangled damn knot on her back. I find it hard to breathe when I see her like that.

Needless to say, I only go to the lake when I am having a terrible day or when it's too hot.

When I woke up in the morning I decided I had to call the coach back. I had to tell him I would take his offer. I had to get out of Albuquerque. I took a quick shower and got dressed for the day. I walked downstairs and Elizabeth ran over to me. "Troy!" She yelled.

I picked her up. "Good morning Liz."

"Good morning." She gave me a big smile as she rested on my hip. "I had a dream and I want to tell you about it. Sit down!" She instructed me.

I set her down and sat in a chair in the kitchen like she instructed. "What was your dream about Liz?"

"I had a dream that I was at Princess Gabi's wedding. I thought she was marrying Roy, but when Roy turned around it wasn't Roy!" She said, astonishing herself. "It was You! You were marrying princess Gabi!"

I nearly choked on my own spit. "Are you sure it was me?" I asked.

She nodded. "It was you! You had a tie on. You looked funny."

I chuckled and started tickling her sides. "That's not nice."

Liz squirmed away from me. "Funny in a good way. Duh." She said, getting up. "That's all." She walked into the living room.

Dad walked down stairs and looked at me. "What was that about?"

I laughed and shook my head. "Your daughter is a diva."

"She takes after her mother." Dad said chuckling. He sat down at the table next to me. "Did you decide anything?"

"Yeah, But I'll wait until mom comes in to tell you guys." I said, looking at him. He just smiled at me. He already knew my decision.

"Wait for me to do what?" Mom said walking in. She held Liz on her hip.

I smiled at her. "I decided I am going to take the offer. So I'll probably be moving to Chicago."

Mom broke out into a smile. "That's great honey! Did you call them back yet?"

I shook my head. "No, but I will now." I got up. "I'll be right back." I walked out into the backyard and called the Chicago Bulls back.

Less than a week later I found myself on a plane to Chicago. I was going to meet with the owner and the coaches and sign some papers. After that I was off to some intense basketball camp. I've only been on an airplane once, that was when I was little. I found myself feeling stupid for a 23 year old man to be afraid of an airplane. It scared the shit out of me. I wouldn't deny it.

"Are you okay sir?" The flight attendant asked before she put her hand on her arm.

I flinched at her touch. "Yes, I'm sorry. I'm just a little nervous."

"Would you like something to drink?" She asked politely, I shook my head in response. She walked away and I sat back. I pulled out my iPod I bought myself a couple years back. I put the headphones in my ears and closed my eyes.

"Sir.. Sir." I felt somebody shaking me. I opened my eyes to see the flight attendant. "We are landing soon, so if you would put your seatbelt on then thank you."

I nodded. "Sorry." I put my seatbelt on and braced my self for the landing.

The landing wasn't as rough as I expected. I got off the plane and walked over to the baggage claim. I saw a man holding up a sign with my name on it. I got my luggage then walked over to the man. "Troy Bolton, my name is Mac. I'll be your driver for today."

"It's nice to meet you Mac. Where are we headed first?" I asked him with a chuckle. I didn't know what to say to him. We walked over to the car and put my luggage in before getting in. Mac drove me to the hotel I would be staying in to drop off my things. Then he took me to the Bulls headquarters and I did a lot of paper work.

With a lot of negotiating I got my number. 14. I would have to come back tomorrow to talk salary but right now I was off to meet some of the players. The team was nice. You always would have the one or two who milked their seniority but I didn't mind. I was used to it.

"So how does it feel to be the highest paid rookie in the NBA?" One of my teammates asked. I didn't quite learn his name yet. He was friendly though.

I chuckled. "I doubt that I am, but when I get my first paycheck I will let you know."

The next day I indeed found out I was the highest paid rookie in the NBA this season. It blew my mind. Maybe I was being modest or incompetent but the Bulls wanted me bad and my salary was enough proof. I checked in with my mom and dad. I quit my job at Murray's and preparing my move to Chicago. It would be weird officially leaving Albuquerque but it was a step in the right direction.

* * *

My rookie season was phenomenal. I enjoyed going from place to place to place. My team and I bonded, they were practically the brothers I've never had. I saw Chad because he played on the Jazz. It was nice to see him again, and Taylor. Playing against him was fun, it was like high school again.

We were almost done with my second season. We were in Phoenix, playing the Suns. I loved playing in Arizona. Mom, Dad and Liz would come down to see me. I missed my little sister like crazy and mom always complained how she would always ask for me every time her phone rang.

I finished my warm ups on the court and walked over to the bench. "Troy!" I heard a little voice scream. "TROY!" I looked over to see my dad holding onto my sister who was trying to wiggle out of his arms.

I chuckled and walked over. "I didn't even see you guys come in." I said smiling.

"Liz insisted we get here early to see you." Mom said, smiling. "Look at you. What is that? Stubble."

I chuckled and rubbed my chin. "Yeah. I'm a man now mom." I said winking at her. She rolled her eyes at me. Liz hugged my legs. I picked her up. "How is my favorite little 6 year old?"

"Good, I miss you!" She hugged her arms around me tightly. "none of my friends at school believe you play for the Bulls."

I laughed. "Well then they aren't cool enough to get an autograph." I said winking at her. "How is school?"

"School is fun! I like recess." She said smiling.

"Recess is the best part." She nodded in agreement. "Well I have to go, I'll see you after the game okay?"

She frowned. "Okay. I love you Troy."

"I love you too Lizzy G." I handed her back to my parents. "I'll see you guys later."

In the middle of the second quarter I got fouled and landed on my knee wrong. It bothered me a little bit but I let them check me out at half time so they would get off my back. Once I got the OK from the doctor I ran out again. Coach put me back in. The score was 90 to 78. We were beating them but they were slowly catching up.

The Suns called a time out and the water guy came running over. I took a bottle and squirted it on my mouth. I wiped my sweat off with a towel. Once the time out was over I was handed the ball. My teammates went rushing forward. I passed it to a teammate on my right and moved closer to the hoop. He took a couple steps before passing it back to me. I caught it and jumped up and a big guy knocked me over. I landed on my bad knee and he was on top of me.

I heard a crack and laid on my back. The adrenaline numbed my knee I didn't even feel it. The trainer ran over to me. "Troy, are you alright?"

"Knee." I said breathlessly. I raised my head to see my kneecap was out of place. All the pain came rushing to my knee. "Fuck." I yelled. I got hauled off the court. I could hear Lizzy yelling for me. I closed my eyes and tried to not think about the pain. They took me to the hospital and gave me some pain killers immediately. I dozed off while they were checking out my knee.

When I woke up I was dazed and confused. I immediately felt the pain in my knee. I opened my eyes and looked around me. "Troy, honey are you alright?" Mom came rushing to my side.

"My fucking knee." I said through my teeth.

"Language." Dad said. I looked over at him. He pointed to Liz who was sleeping on the couch. I shot a glare at him.

The doctor came walking in. "Hello Troy, I'm Dr. Garcia We were waiting for you to take up so we could do some x-rays." He said. "Do you want to go now?" He asked.

I nodded. A couple of people wheeled me down to radiology and took some x-rays. I sighed as they wheeled me back to the room. "Nurse?" I asked.

"Yes Mr. Bolton." The nurse said.

"Can I get something for my knee please?" I asked.

"Of course." She said. They set me back up into the room before she left. I heard my phone ringing. I picked it up.

"Hello?" I asked.

_"Hey Man! I just saw you on ESPN How's your knee?"_ Chad asked me.

I sighed. "I hurts like hell. They just took x-rays so I don't know for a little while." I took some of the drugs that the nurse gave me. I took a drink of my water. "How'd you guys do?" I asked him.

_"We have a bye this week, but next week were headed out to LA."_ Chad said.

"Are you excited?" I asked him. "When I played at Staples I was so excited."

Chad chuckled. "_Yeah, Tay is coming with me."_

I smiled. "That's always fun. How is Taylor?"

_"She's good, she says hello.. Wait she wants to talk to you."_ Chad said.

_"Troy?"_ I heard Taylor's voice on the phone.

"What's up McKessie?" I asked her. I was starting to feel loopy from the drugs.

She laughed. _"Nothing Bolton. How's your knee?"_

"Better now. The nurse gave me something for the pain, I feel goooood." I said, elongating the O.

_"Oh no, you're all drugged up?"_ She asked laughing. _"What am I going to do with you Bolton?"_

I shrugged to myself. "I don't know."

_"Anyways Troy, I just want to tell you that Chad and I are proud of you."_ Taylor said in my ear.

"Thank you Taylor! I am proud of you too." I said. I sat there for a minute calming down. "How's Gabi?" I asked hesitantly.

_"She's good."_ Taylor said quietly.

"When you go to LA tell her I love her okay? I still do. It's been 6 years and I love her." I blurted out. I had no control over what I was saying at that moment. "Wait, don't tell her. She doesn't like me."

_"Troy…"_ Taylor said.

"No, no, no, no, no, no." I repeated. "Tell her to come here, she'll make me feel better."

"_Troy? Hello?"_ It was Chad this time. _"You alright?"_

"Just peachy. Did you hear what I told Taylor?" I said. I watched the doctor come in. "Oh, doctors here. I'll talk to you later. I love you Chad!" I hung up. "Man, what did you give me?" I asked the doctor.

The doctor sat down. "I have some bad news for you Troy."

I felt like I sobered up quick. "What? What is it?"

"You shattered your knee. We are going to have to rebuild it. You are definitely out for the rest of the season." The Doctor said, looking at me. I closed my eyes and put my head back. "I'm sorry Troy." I heard him get up and walk away.

I heard somebody walk into the room. "What did the doctor say?" Moms quiet voice said from next to me.

"I shattered my knee. I'm out for the season, so my basketball career is pretty much over." I said quietly.

"Oh honey." She said, putting her hand on mine.

"I miss her." I admitted quietly. "I wish she was here."

She squeezed my hand gently. "I know honey, I know."

* * *

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	31. Remember me?

**Gabriella's POV**

"Please go out with me." Samuel asked me, holding my hands.

A small smile crept on my face. "Okay" I nodded. "I'll go out with you."

Sam broke out into a big smile. "Yes! Are you free tonight? I'll pick you up at 7"

I nodded. "Sounds good. I'll see you later Sam." He placed a kiss on my cheek before I walked away from him.

I headed back to my apartment near the Stanford campus. After I graduated from UCLA I moved up to Palo Alto to attend Stanford. I was doing well. I missed my dad and Bree but she came up sometimes. She recently got married to her boyfriend of 3 years, Rob. I was so happy for her, I couldn't imagine her with anyone else. Samuel Gates was a year younger than I was. He was such a nice guy. I had a school girl crush on him so I was more than excited when he actually asked me out.

It had been almost eight years since that summer. I had come to terms with what had happened but I still thought about him often. Where he was, what he was up to, that sort of thing. Taylor told me he went into the NBA but that was the last I heard of him.

Chad went into the NBA too. He was doing really well. He and Taylor were engaged and their wedding was coming up soon. Chad got traded to the Sacramento Kings so they were a couple hours away. I was so happy for them. I was going to make a trip up there soon.

I got to my apartment and opened the door, kicking my shoes off. My house phone rang and I ran to go get it. "Hello?" I asked.

_"Hey Baby Girl, what are you up to?"_ Daddy asked from the other side of the line.

"Just got home from class. What about you?" I asked, sitting on the couch.

Dad coughed. _"I called you earlier but you didn't answer. I wanted to tell you I was going to speak at a art college in San Francisco this weekend and I want you to come."_

"Of course, let me know the times and I will definitely be there." I told him.

_"Well I'm speaking twice, once in the morning and once in the afternoon. I'm going to check on the store then I have to fly back to LA and meet with some people. You know how it is."_ Dad said. "_Well I will let you know. I'll talk to you later."_

"Alright, I love you daddy." I said, smiling.

_"Love you too baby girl."_ He said before hanging up.

I put the phone back on the charger and walked into my stuff and I looked around, deciding what to wear for my date. I picked out something then got started on my 18 page paper I had to write for my communications class. I got though about 4 pages when I looked at the time. 5:40. I jumped up and hopped in the shower. I got dressed quickly and did my hair and make up. I looked at my short curly hair in the mirror. _'You should never cut your hair'_ I heard his voice ring in my mind. I closed my eyes and shook out of it.

I heard a knock at my door and walked over to answer it. "Gabriella, wow. You look beautiful." Sam said, looking at me up and down.

I smiled at him. "Thank you, you look nice too. Let me just get my purse and we can go." I got my purse and put it on my shoulder. I grabbed my keys and walked back over to him. I closed and locked the door. I put my keys in my purse. Sam laced his fingers in between mine. I smiled at him and we walked down the stairs. He lead me over to his Prius and he opened the door for me. "Thank you."

I looked around thinking of where we were going. "So I know this really great sushi place in the city and I want to take you, does that sound good?" He asked glancing at me.

I nodded, even though I didn't even like sushi. "That sounds fine." I smiled at him.

His thumb caressed my hand as we drove. "You turn on the radio if you'd like" Sam offered.

"Alright." I said quietly. I turned on the radio and switched through his presets. I could tell he liked classic rock and oldies. I turned the tuner to the local country station. "Is this okay?" I asked him.

"I didn't know you liked country music." Sam said glancing at me. "Good to know." I smiled at him and hummed along to the song on the radio. We got to the sushi place and I got out, not waiting for him to open the door for me. "Um, I was going to get that for you." He said running over to me.

I smiled. "It's fine Sam, you don't have to open doors for me. But thank you." I laced my fingers with his and we walked into the restaurant. We got seated and I looked at the menu.

"What are you thinking about getting?" Sam asked after a minute. "I think I'm getting a spicy tuna roll. Those are my favorite."

"I think I just want some chicken." I said looking at the menu. "The chicken looks really good."

"Oh, alright." Sam said looking at me. I gave him a reassuring smile.

The date was good. His sushi smelled weird but I got over it. He took me home and gave me a kiss. The kiss was nice. I could see myself liking him, maybe if we were actually doing something and not eating dinner.

The weekend came by quickly. I was so excited to see my daddy. I walked into the building quietly. I was a little late for his morning speech. I sat in the back and watched my father talk eloquently. Whenever he talked about what he does passion flickers in his eyes. I smiled up at him.

After he was finished people came up and met him. I waited until the line died down and I walked up there. "Hey daddy" I said smiling.

"Gabi!" Dads face lit up. He walked over to me and wrapped his arms around me. "How's my baby girl doing?"

I smiled at him. "I'm doing good. I miss you so much!" I pulled him into another hug.

"I missed you too baby girl." Dad gave me a kiss on the forehead. "Did you like it?"

I nodded. 'You did wonderfully. I think I'm going to come back later and listen to you again. I want you to meet Sam."

Dad looked at me, raising his eyebrow. "Boyfriend?"

I shook my head and smiled at him. "We've been on a couple dates."

He smiled at me. "Good for you Gabi, you deserve to be happy."

"Thank you daddy, You hungry? We could go get something to eat." I offered.

"I just ate before I spoke, but thank you anyway. One of my good colleagues teaches here and he wanted me to meet one of his best students. You don't have to stick around baby, you can go home." Dad said looking at me. "I won't leave without saying goodbye."

I sighed. "Alright. You're on at 5 right?" I asked him.

"Yes. I'll see you later." Dad said packing his things. I eyes him suspiciously. He was up to something.

"Alright, bye daddy." I walked out of the room. I walked to the car.

_"Yeah it's fine, I'll be back soon Bye mom."_ I looked around. That voice sounded so familiar. I must have been hearing things. I shook my head and got into the car. I drove back to my apartment and called Sam.

_"Hey Gabi"_ Sam answered. _"What are you up to?"_

"My dad's in town, I just heard him speak." I said, closing the door behind me. "I wanted to know if you would like to come see him with me later."

_"Yeah, sure. I'd love to come."_ Sam said.

I smiled to myself. "Sweet, alright. Do you want me to pick you up or do you want to come get me?"

_"Actually could I meet you there?"_ Sam asked.

My smile faltered. "Alright, that's fine. I guess I'll see you there then." We said our goodbyes and I hung up the phone.

I worked on my paper and took a little nap. I woke up and looked at the time. 3:40. "Shit!" I cursed myself before throwing on clothes. I ran down to my car and got in. I hopped on the freeway and an hour and 30 minutes later I arrived. I was so late and there was an accident and I was freaking out. I parked next to a big truck and got out of the car. I ran inside and found the room. I found Sam sitting in the back and I sat next to him.

"You're late" He said, smiling at me.

I frowned. "I know, I'm sorry" I whispered. I leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "How has it been so far?"

"Good." He said smiling. "Your father is a great speaker."

I nodded in agreement. "He is." I sat back quietly and watched my father speak.

Once he was finished I waited until the line died down again. I pulled Sam over to my dad. "Daddy! This is Sam, Sam this is my dad." I said after pulling away from the hug dad engulfed me in.

"It's nice to meet you sir." Sam said. Dad shook his hand. "I hate to run but I have a meeting across town, I hope you aren't mad." Sam said with a frown.

I shook my head. "Of course not. I'll see you later." I gave him a peck on the lips.

"Maybe we can go out for sushi or something." He said with a smile. I waved to him and turned back to my father.

Dad smiled at me. "He sounds like a nice guy." His face changed as he looked behind me. I saw a small smirk on his face.

I turned around to see where he was looking. "Sushi? Really?" A familiar voice asked. My mouth opened to speak but my eyes just looked over him, up and down. "Do you remember me?" He asked with a taunting smile.

I blinked at him. "Of course I do!" I said a little too enthusiastically. He let out a laugh that made my insides flutter. I turned to look at my dad. "Did you know he was here?" I asked him.

"I met Troy earlier. He graduated from here and was one of my colleagues best students. He invited him down to see me speak." Dad said with a smile on his face.

I turned back to Troy Bolton. "you went to art school?" I asked, very confused.

"Drafting and design." Troy explained. "I own my Bolton Construction the biggest construction company in New Mexico."

"Troy was telling me he bought Albuquerque Rocks from the previous owner." Dad said chiming in.

I looked at Troy incredulously. "Doug and my dad were close. Doug retired and he sold the company to me. It still has its same name. It is a strong supplier for Bolton Construction." He said smiling.

I looked from Troy to my dad then back to Troy. "Am I dreaming right now?"

Dad chuckled. "No Gabi."

Troy smiled at me. My eyes traveled down his arm. He still had his tattoo. My heart sped up. My knees gave out and thankfully there was a chair perfectly behind me. "I think I'm having an anxiety attack." I said, gasping for breath. I put my head between my knees.

"Gabi are you alright?" Dad said rushing over to me.

I looked over at Troy who was walking over to me with a slight limp. He handed me a bottle of water. "Drink it, it's cold." He took a seat next to me, flexing his knee.

I hesitantly accepted the water and sat up slowly. I took a drink of the cold water before returning the cap. I put my hand on my forehead. I looked at Troy's knee. I saw a big scar on the side of it. "What happened to your knee?" I asked him, catching my breath.

"My second year in the NBA, I was in Arizona and I got fouled. I landed on my knee. Then I went back in the game and I got fouled again and I landed on the same knee but with somebody on top of me this time. My knee cap was over here and I shattered the bone under it. I had four surgeries to rebuild it." I flexed it again. 'It still bothers me sometimes."

"Oh." I said breathlessly. I took another drink of water. "Thank you for this by the way."

"No problem." He said quietly.

I took a deep breath and stood up. I looked over at dad who was packing his things. "Well I should get going. I have a 45 minute drive home."

"You don't live in LA?" Troy asked.

I shook my head. "No, I'm in my final year at Stanford" Troy cracked a smile. "I'm getting my doctorate."

Troy's phone started ringing. "Excuse me." He answered his phone. "Hello?… Hey Lizzy, what are you doing?… Aren't you supposed to be sleeping?… It's almost 8... What story?…" Troy stiffened and looked at me. "No, not that story… Because I said so Liz… Tell dad to read you a story…I know he doesn't but I can't right now… Can I talk to mom?… Hey mom… I didn't make her cry on purpose… Because I can't… Nothings going on… Hold on mom."

"What's the matter?" I asked him.

"My little sister is freaking out because I wont tell her a story." He said, looking away.

"Just tell her the story." I said, sitting back down.

"I can't…" He trailed off.

I looked at him confused. "Why not?"

"Because you're here." He said quietly. "Do you want to talk to my mom? your voice would explain everything."

I raised my eyebrows. "Okay." He handed me his phone. "Hello?" I asked.

_"Troy? Wait, who is this?"_ I heard Lucy on the other side of the line.

"Lucy, this is Gabriella Montez." I said into the phone.

_"Wait… Gabriella?… Your?… I am so confused… hi Gabi!"_ She said cheerfully after a minute.

I giggled quietly. "Hi Lucy, long time no talk."

_"It's been years."_ She said in awe. _"How are you?"_

I smiled to myself. "I'm good. I'm living in Northern California. I'm going to Stanford."

_"That's great honey!"_ She said excitedly. _"It was your dream wasn't it?"_

I nodded to myself. "It was, it was. Well Troy said my voice would explain everything so I'm going to give him back the phone."

_"Alright, take care of yourself honey! It was so nice to talk to you!"_ Lucy said.

"You too." I said before handing Troy back his phone. I felt the tears welling up in my eyes. I got up and grabbed my purse. I walked over to my dad.

"You okay?" He asked me.

I shook my head. "I'm going to go home now. You did great daddy really." I pulled him in for a tight hug. "Have a safe flight."

"Gabi, I'm sorry. I should have warned you." Dad said quietly.

I wiped the falling tear. "Yes you should have." I said calmly. 'I love you daddy."

"I love you too baby." He said, kissing my forehead. "I'm so sorry."

I turned around and started walking out. "Mom I have to go." I heard Troy say before getting up and following me. "Gabi wait."

"For what?" I said, as I kept walking.

"We need to talk." He said, catching up to me.

"It's been eight years! Why do you need to talk to me now?" I asked, raising my voice. I turned around and walked out to the parking garage.

"Gabi can you just stop for a second please?" Troy begged.

"Why should I?" I yelled at him. I stopped and turned around. "Why should I listen to anything you have to say? You broke my heart! I waited for you to call me for years and you never did."

"What was I supposed to say? Your mom hated me and You were a thousand miles away! What was I supposed to do?" He shouted back at me. "The day after you left my mom tells me that she's pregnant and she could not wait to tell you. I had to tell her you were gone."

"We could have made it work Troy! I don't give two shits about what my mother said. I could've flown down there to see you Troy. My dad didn't care and I thought you didn't either. You just dumped me and drove away." I said, wiping the tears that we free falling down my face.

"I wanted you and your mom to work it out! You deserve to have a good relationship with your mother. I sacrificed my feelings for you because I love you." His voice started to lower.

I shook my head. "No. You haunted me for the past eight years and now your back. You don't have the right to explain yourself to me. You had eight years to pick up a phone and talk to me. Do you know what I did after I got to LA? I cut my hair off and drank myself in a coma. I had my stomach pumped and cried myself to sleep for months!" I glared at him, getting angry all over again "And NEWSFLASH. I have not talked to Katherine in eight years. But you would known that if you had called me." I yelled.

Troy furrowed his eyebrows at me. "I haunted you? I don't have the right to explain myself to you?" His face was hard and his eyes were dark. "At least you got to leave! You were everywhere in Albuquerque! You were in my truck! My House! The Lake! My Bed! Everywhere I went there you fucking were. The hardest thing I've ever fucking did was drive my truck away from you that day!" He yelled wiping his face. "I don't have the right to explain to you that everything I did, I did for you? Then fine. I guess I'm wasting my time." Troy pushed past me and hopped in the truck that was parked next to my car and drove away.

I walked to my car and got in. I put my hands on my face and sobbed into my hands.

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	32. Someone's Jealous

**Gabriella's POV**

I woke up to knocking on my door. I looked at the time. It was 12:30. Thank goodness it was Sunday. I don't think I would have gone to class if it was Monday. I laid in my big bed and heard another knock. I sighed and pulled some shorts on and walked to the door. I opened the door and Sam was on the other end.

"Hey Gabi." He said smiling. "I called you a couple times but you didn't answer so I wanted to make sure you were okay."

I sighed. 'I'm sorry. I just woke up. I didn't get that much sleep last night."

He frowned. "I'm sorry I woke you. I wanted to see if you wanted to go out and do something, it's a beautiful day." He looked at me and then looked down. "But if you're not up to it…"

I bit my bottom lip. "I guess we can go out. I just have to get ready. Come in please." I opened the door for him and he came in. I closed the door behind him. "I'm just going to jump in the shower and I'll get ready quick, I promise."

He chuckled. "Alright Gabi."

I hopped in the shower and got dressed quickly. I put my hair up into a bun and slipped some comfortable shoes on. I didn't really feel like getting dressed up. I picked up my purse and checked my phone. I slipped it in my purse and put it around my shoulder. I walked into the living room. Sam was walking around looking at my pictures on the wall. "Ready?" I asked.

He jumped. "Yeah, sorry. I was just looking at your pictures."

I shrugged. "That's fine, did you find anything interesting?" I joked.

Sam cracked a smile. "Nothing remotely, your house is very, very boring." He joked back and I let out a soft giggle.

"Where are we off too Mr. Gates?" I asked, putting my hand in his as we walked out of the door.

"I was thinking we could go to Pier 39 and walk around, see some sea lions." He kissed the back of my hand. "Nothing too high strung."

I smiled up at him. "That sounds perfect actually."

"I'm glad." We walked over to his Prius and he opened the door for me. I climbed in and put my seatbelt on.

I looked over at Sam as he drove. He was nice and tall. He was very handsome. His blonde hair was neatly in place. He was very smart. He came from money, I'm not sure what his parents did though. His eyes were brown, lighter than mine. I liked him but after yesterday I couldn't help but compare him to Troy.

Troy had grown up nicely. His hair was shorter and a little darker. It was messed up perfectly. He was possibly more muscular, god, if that could happen. He grew another inch or two. The stubble on his chin was incredibly sexy. I could already imagine the scratchy feeling as his mouth traveled along my neck.

"You alright Gabriella?" Sam asked snapping me out of my thoughts.

I blinked a couple times and I looked down to see my white knuckles gripping the handle on the car door. I released the handle and placed my hands in my lap. "Yeah, sorry, I was lost in thought." I said quietly. "What are you going to do after you graduate?"

He chuckled. "That was random." He smiled at me. "Well, after I finish my schooling I will work at Stanford hospital for two years then I will be able to take my exams and continue to work there or go somewhere else. I haven't decided yet."

"I see, I think you are going to make a wonderful doctor." I said, crossing my legs. "Sorry, I can't sit still."

"That's fine." Sam said putting his hand on my knee. "What do you plan to do after you graduate?"

I let out a breath. "I might go back down to LA, open my own practice. I might do a little traveling. I'm not entirely sure." I looked out the window as the car got quiet again. It was a little awkward silence but I guess that was to be expected. We parked in the parking garage and I got out of the car. "I love the pier." I smiled as I looked over the wall of the parking garage.

"Come on Gabriella." Sam said holding his hand out. I ran over to him, putting my hand in his. We walked down the stairs to the sidewalk. We walked toward the entrance. "Where do you want to go first?"

"Could we walk the shops before looking at the sea lions?" I asked him hopefully.

He chuckled and nodded. "That is fine Gabriella."

"Please call me Gabi." I begged.

Sam nodded. "Sorry, Gabi."

"It's fine, let's go" I started walking off into one of the shops. I walked into the silly hat store and I picked on and put it on. "How do I look Sam?"

He chuckled. "You look very cute."

"Try one on!" I said, picking up a had for him.

Sam shook his head. "No, I'm good. They look better on you."

I put the hats back and sighed. "Let's go into the sock store." He nodded and we walked into the sock store. "I like the one with the cows on them." I said picking them up. "Do you think they're cute?"

Sam just shrugged. "They're cows."

"Yeah, They're cute." Somebody said from behind me. I turned around and saw Troy holding a pair of the same socks, standing next to a lady. "I'm getting the same pair for my sister."

I gave him a little smile. "Hey Troy." I said quietly.

"Hey Gab." He turned to the lady and handed her the socks. "Could you buy these and I'll meet you outside Jenifer." He handed her his wallet.

"No problem Troy." She said before she walked away.

I felt the little green monster rise up in me. "Who's that?" I asked curiously.

"Jenifer, my assistant. She flew in this morning." He explained. "Who's your friend?" He asked eyeing Sam.

"Right. Troy this is my friend Sam, Sam this is an old friend. Troy." I introduced them.

"It's nice to meet you." Sam said politely. "I wanted to look in the next store, so I'll meet you there?" He asked, putting his hand on the mall of my back.

I nodded. "Sure, I'll be right there." Sam gave me a kiss on the cheek. I turned back to Troy who had his hands in his pockets. "I wanted to say I'm sorry for yesterday. It was a lot to take in at one time and there is so many things left unsaid and I shouldn't have yelled at you like that." I said sighing, sucking up my pride.

"I'm sorry too. I was hoping we could at least be friends." Troy asked, running his fingers though his hair. "We could go to dinner and talk about it, only if you want to."

I nodded. "I'd like that." I opened my purse and handed him my phone. "Can I get your number?"

He gave me a soft smile. He chuckled. "Sure." He took my phone and put his number in. "I'll be in San Francisco until Thursday night, so if you want to go to dinner just call me and let me know."

I nodded as he handed me back my phone. "I will, I guess I should go."

"Let me walk you out." Troy offered and I nodded. I put the pair of socks back and walked out of the store. "Hopefully I'll see you around?" He asked.

"Well you've seen me twice in one weekend so I guess we'll see." I joked. He cracked a smile. "I'll call you."

"You better." Troy said with a wink. I felt my cheeks flush. 'Bye Gab."

"Bye Troy." I said walking into the next store. I found Sam in the back looking at t-shirts. "Hey." I said, putting my hand on his back.

Sam looked over at me and smiled. "Hey, what do you think about this shirt?" He asked holding one up.

I giggled. "If you want to look like a tourist then go for it."

He chuckled and put the shirt back. "Let's go look at the sea lions."

After we were done at the pier we took a walk down the street and looked at all the little tourist shops. I bought a new lifeguard sweatshirt. He took me home before it started to get dark. He dropped me off at my apartment and I walked upstairs holding my jacket.

I walked inside and laid down on my bed. I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my contacts. I stopped at a particular name. "Troy Maxwell Bolton." I giggled quietly. "Only he would put his full name in- Oh shit." I accidentally pressed send. I stared at my phone. "Shit." I pressed end quickly. "Shit shit shit." I repeated and threw my phone on the bed. I got up and heard my phone ringing. "Shit!" I said. Troy was calling me back.

I answered the phone hesitantly. "Hello?" I said quietly.

_"Hi, It's Troy Bolton. I just got a call from this number."_ Troy said sounding very professional.

"I know, I called you on accident." I said with a giggle.

_"Ah, you prank calling me Montez?"_ I could hear the smile on his face.

"No." I said, smiling. "How'd you even know it was me?"

_"I could know your voice anywhere Gabi."_ He said.

I rolled my eyes. "I'm rolling my eyes at you right now." I said giggling. He chuckled.

_"You don't talk as much as you used to."_ He said quietly after a minute.

I let out a sigh. "I don't have much to say anymore." I laid back against my bed.

_"And you cut your hair."_ Troy said.

"I cut it in a drunken stupor eight years ago. I guess I didn't feel like growing it out again." I said. I thought for a minute. "You said something about reading a story to your sister yesterday. You couldn't tell her because I was there. Why did I effect your story?"

Troy chuckled. _"Ah, right. The story. Well when Elizabeth was little she would always want me to tell her a story. So I told her a story about Princess Gabi."_ A smile broke out on my face. _"And that of course had to be her favorite story._"

I let a giggle slip. "Tell me the story of Princess Gabi." I said smirking.

He sighed._ "No."_

"Come on." I begged. "I won't laugh I swear." I bit my lip to hold in another giggle.

_"Fine… Once upon a time there was a Princess named Gabi. She had long curly brown hair and was very beautiful. She was good and everything she did and was very smart as well. She was from the far away kingdom of California. One day her evil step mother moved her away to the desert. She met a native desert man named Roy and they became best friends. But Gabi's evil step mom did not like Roy. Gabi and Roy did everything together, swimming, fishing and hanging out. One night in Roy's carriage, they kissed and fell in love. But The Evil step mother did everything to keep them apart. They still saw each other every night because Gabi loved Roy and Roy loved Princess Gabi with all his heart."_ He stopped for a minute and cleared his throat. _"The evil step mother caught Roy and Gabi and she sent Gabi back to her native kingdom in California. Roy wanted to go see her but his carriage wouldn't make it that far. So he waited and waited and he made his own kingdom. He asked the king of California to marry Princess Gabi and they got married and lived happily ever after. The end."_

I couldn't help but smile. "I think I've heard that story before."

_"It's a very famous fairy tale."_ He murmured.

"What's Elizabeth like?" I asked curiously. "I want to meet her one day."

He chuckled. _"Lizzy. She is rambunctious and very creative. She could do anything and have a blast. She is very outgoing. She loves talking to people. She would love you if you ever met. She's smart too. She's in the Gifted and Talented class at school. I couldn't be more proud of her."_

"She sounds amazing." I said, smiling. "She definitely sounds like a Bolton."

Troy chuckled. _"She definitely is a Bolton. She's got the Bolton Blue Eyes."_

"Ah Bolton Blue Eyes. You should Trademark your sperm" I said bursting out in giggles. "Oh, goodness."

Troy started laughing as well. _"Who ever I am lucky enough to marry will get kids with Bolton Blue Eyes and that's it."_ He let out a sigh after he finished laughing. _"I'm not selling out my little swimmers"_

"It was a joke Troy." I said, turning over, getting comfortable on my bed. I thought for a minute. "You know what?" I asked.

_"I know it was, What do I know?"_ He asked.

"I think you should sing me a song… For old times sake." I asked biting my bottom lip. Troy was quiet for a minute. "Still there?" I asked quietly.

_"Yeah, sorry. I'm here."_ He said into the phone.

"Did you hear my question?" I asked.

_"Yeah I did."_ He replied.

"What do you say?" I asked, scratching my arm.

_"I guess I can, it wouldn't hurt… You know what? I have the perfect song."_ Troy said before he let out a small laugh.

"Alright, let's hear it." I said, giddy. I bit my bottom lip in anticipation.

_"I heard you had to drive him home after two umbrella drinks._  
_I heard he drives a Prius, cause he's into being Green._  
_My buddy said he saw y'all eatin' that sushi stuff._  
_Baby that don't sound like you that don't sound like love._  
_It sounds like it sucks."_

He let out a laugh.

_"He can't even bait a hook. He can't even skin a buck._  
_He don't know who Jack Daniels is._  
_Ain't ever drove a truck._  
_Knows how to throw out line_  
_But not the kind in a field and stream book_  
_No darling I ain't even worried, you'll come runnin' back._  
_He can't even bait a hook."_

"Somebody's jealous." I sang back to him. I bit my lip as I giggled quietly.

Troy stopped singing abruptly. _"Who's jealous?"_ He asked.

"Prince Roy." I answered, giggling.

_"Prince Roy is not jealous."_ Troy said defensively. _"He has no reason to be jealous."_

"Okay, sure." I said sarcastically. "But if Princess Gabi had a male friend, I think Roy would be very jealous."

Troy chuckled in response._"It won't be that long 'til you start getting bored._  
_I'll be smiling on that river, reeling in one more." _He sang back in response.

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever Troy. It's not like Sam and I are an item. We've just been on a couple of dates."

_"That's nice to know."_ He replied. I could hear the smirk on his face. I groaned in frustration. _"You should be flattered, not frustrated."_ He said before he sighed. _"I hate hotels, they smell weird."_

"Which hotel are you staying at?" I asked him, ignoring his remark.

_"The W."_ He said. _"Where are you staying?"_

"I have an apartment in Palo Alto, which is about 45 minutes away" I said before stifling a yawn. "Today was a long day. I don't want to go to class tomorrow."

_"How many classes do you have tomorrow?"_ He asked.

"Only 2 but they're morning classes. I have a speech class first than a psychology class." I said, looking at the time. "I get out at noon."

"_At least you only have two you don't have to be there all day."_ Troy offered.

I nodded to myself. "I guess you're right." I sighed. "I should get to sleep."

_"Alright,"_ He sounded a little disappointed. _"I guess I'll see you when I see you."_

"Another place another time." I replied with a smile.

Troy let out a chuckle. _"Jason Aldean never fails."_

I sighed in content. "No, he does not. Goodnight Troy."

_"Goodnight Gabriella."_ He said quietly before hanging up.

I put my phone on the charger and rolled over in bed. I hated how much I missed him. I hated even more how easy it was to talk to him. I couldn't hate him though, not even a little bit, no matter how bad I want to. I think there will always be a part of me that will always love him. Nothing could compare to how he made me feel. Maybe I was naïve but since then I didn't get that tingly feeling I had whenever he just looked at me. We did have something special. It wasn't perfect, but nothing ever is.

* * *

I rushed out of my apartment and I ran down the stairs. I was so late for class. I walked as fast as I could to campus. I hated taking my car, it was a waste of gas and I only lived 10 minutes away. I made it to class only 20 minutes late.

I got a text from Troy in the middle of my second class.

_"Hey, Which hall is the sciences building in? Jenifer said its always in one named after an athlete. Is yours named after an athlete?"_

I let out a giggle and looked around to see if anyone heard me. I send him a quick reply.

"Ours is named after an Author, McCallough. The same building I'm in."

_"Oh Alright, Jen owes me 10 bucks. Thank you. ;)"_

I shook my head and put my phone away.

"Who was that?" Lena asked leaning over to me. Lena was a friend I made, she's in a couple of my classes. We talk sometimes but we're not best friends.

"An old friend." I said, looking at her. "I recently met up with him this weekend."

"Oh that's always fun!" She said with a smile. "I miss my old friends back in Washington." She said with a sigh. The class finished. Lena and I walked out of the building together. We walked out and I saw a big truck parked in front of the building. I stopped when I saw a blue eyed man standing in front of it. That sneaky- "Someone is compensating." Lena said, stopping next to me.

I let out a breath. "He definitely has nothing to compensate for."

Lena's eyes bugged out and she stood in front of me. "You know him? And wait.. You're not a virgin?"

"That is my old friend I was talking about and no I am not a virgin." I said with my mouth agape. "What made you think I was a virgin?"

She shrugged. "God, I don't know. You just seem so innocent."

I laughed and shook my head. "I am far from innocent, Lena."

"He's cute, introduce me." She said, looking back at him.

"Alright I guess." I said hesitantly. I walked over to Troy with Lena. "What are you doing here?" I asked Troy.

He shrugged. "I had nothing better to do."

"That whole Jenifer thing, you made up didn't you?" I said, trying not to smile at him.

He shook his head. "Guilty." He said with a smile. "Who is your friend Gab?" He asked looking over at Lena.

I turned my direction to her and she was looking down at his pants. It didn't take a genius to figure out what she was trying to look at. "Lena." I nudged her. She looked up and blushed a little bit. She looked over at me. "Lena, this is Troy. Troy, this is Lena."

"Nice to meet you Troy." She said with a smile.

He nodded. "Nice to meet you too, Lena" Troy turned his attention back to me. "Would you like to go to lunch?"

I licked my lips. "Yeah, I would. I'm starving." I turned to Lena. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah, Bye Gabi, Bye Troy." She said before she waved and walked away.

"So where are we going?" I asked looking at Troy.

He shrugged. "I don't know. You live here." I giggled quietly. I stepped closer to him and wrapped my arms around him. He froze then hesitantly wrapped his arms around me. "Thank you for coming."

"Anytime." He replied quietly.

* * *

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	33. The One that Got Away

**Troy's POV**

I helped Gabi into the big truck and closed the door behind her. I walked around and got back in the truck. It has been one hell of a weekend. I saw Gabi, fought with Gabi, Made up with Gabi. No matter what stage of my life I'm in it's always about Gabi. I let out a sigh.

"You alright?" A sweet voice asked from beside me.

I nodded. "Yeah, sorry. Did you pick a place to go?" I asked turning on the truck. The radio blasted country music, I jumped and turned it down quickly. "Sorry." I said again.

Gabi looked at me and smiled. "No problem. There's an Olive Garden down the street" She suggested.

"That sound fine, I need you to help me get out of here. I got so lost coming in." I admitted, putting my seatbelt on. I put the truck in drive and started driving.

Gabi giggled and kicked her foot under her right leg. She raised her body to look out the window. "You're going to make a left and drive straight and it will take you out." She said before she slumped back down. I focused on driving. "Hello?" I head her say. I looked over to see she was on the phone. "Oh, I already left… Well I didn't know you were coming, I'm sorry… My friend Troy, from yesterday picked me up… He surprised me! I hadn't seen him in eight years!… You can pout all you want Sam… Alright,… It's fine… yeah I'll see you tomorrow… Bye." She hung up the phone.

I glanced at her again. "Trouble in paradise?"

I could tell she rolled her eyes at me. "We went on our first date on Thursday so I could hardly call it paradise." She played with her phone in her hands. I turned onto the main road. "Do you date?" She asked, looking over at me.

I shook my head. "I don't have the time, or make the time I should be honest. I work at least 80 hours a week now. Before I was juggling school, basketball, and work. When I went into the NBA, Basketball was a full time job. I drank myself through the first two months of recovery. Then I enrolled in school. Then it was school and therapy. Then I started working so now I work." I explained to her. "I like to keep myself busy."

"I see that." She said, watching me. I was looking at her out of the corner of my eye. "You tend to do that when you don't want to think about things."

"Is that your education talking?" I said with a chuckle.

She shook her head. "No, you did that when you were 18 too."

"Ah, some things never change." I said, licking my lips.

She sighed. "They sure don't. Oh, a right at the light."

We found our way to the Olive Garden. We were lead to a table and we sat across from each other in a booth. She picked up a menu and looked at it for a second and put it down. "I'm Talia, I'll be your waitress what can I get for you to drink?"

"Dr. Pepper." Gabi and I said at the same time. Her cheeks flushed and I smiled to myself.

The waitress laughed. "Well two Dr. Peppers. Are you guys ready to order?"

Gabi looked at me. "You ready?"

I nodded. "I'm ready."

"Alright, what can I get for you miss?" Talia asked Gabi.

"Fettuccini Alfredo with Angel hair pasta, please" Gabi said, handing the waitress her menu. They both turned to me.

"Well, I just want soup and salad." I told her, I looked at the menu again. "I want the white soup with the potato things in it." I smiled apologetically.

"Gnocchi." Talia said, laughing.

"Yeah, that one." I said, Gabi giggled from next to me. I handed the waitress the menu. 'Thank you."

"No problem, I'll be back with your drinks." Talia smiled as she walked away.

Gabi shook her head at me. "What am I going to do with you Troy?" She asked.

"You don't want me to answer that here." I thought out loud. I felt my face redden. "Sorry." I looked at Talia walking over with our drinks.

"Two Dr. Peppers." She handed us straws and walked away.

I picked up a straw and unwrapped one half. I put the open side of the straw to my lips and blew the other end at Gabi. It hit her in the forehead. I laughed and put the straw in the drink. "Troy!" She squealed. She balled up the straw wrapper and threw it at me.

I chuckled and took a drink of my drink. "So how have you been?" I asked, folding my hands in my lap.

Gabi shrugged. "Going through the motions. I'm so tired of school. I can't wait until May so I can finally be out." She let out a frustrated breath. "I love school I really do but I've been in school non stop for 21 years. I'm so ready to be done."

"That's how I felt at U of A." I said, sympathetically. "Then basketball took over my life. I loved the traveling but I missed two years at home. I missed Liz's first day of school. I was the highest paid Rookie. I am set for life now, but…" I shrugged.

She smiled at me. "You don't care about that."

I shook my head. "I don't. But anyway, I started up Bolton construction with the help of my dad. God, everything took off from there." I licked my lips. "I go down to the lake sometimes after a long day. I still see you there. At first I thought I was going crazy. Maybe I was, but I just missed you." I said with a shrug.

"I missed you too." She said quietly.

"Here is your salad." Talia said putting the bowl on the table. "I brought two plates, just in case."

"Thank you." I said looking at the waitress. "Would you like some?" I asked holding a plate out. She nodded and accepted it.

"I haven't talked to Katherine since she called me to tell me she sold Albuquerque Rocks. I still am so mad at her. I hate her Troy. I hate her so much." Gabi said quietly. I handed her the salad tongs. "First, I was so glad she didn't call. Then I realized she didn't want anything to do with me. She doesn't care that I graduated in the top 5 percent of my class at UCLA. She doesn't care that I got into Stanford. She doesn't care that I'm about to graduate." She shrugged. "She ripped me away from the only person I've ever loved and she sold my grandfathers company and moved to New York. I hate her." She put the tongs in the salad and stabbed a piece of lettuce on her plate.

I frowned and let out a sigh. "I'm sorry." She shrugged. "When I blew out my knee, I remember being wheeled off into the hospital. I passed out for a little while and then I woke up and my knee hurt so bad. I asked the nurse for some pain medication. I still don't know what they gave me but I felt high as a kite. Chad called me after I got back from my x-rays and Taylor was with him. I talked to Taylor and she told me that her and Chad were proud of me. I told him when he gets to LA to tell you I love you and that I needed you there." I looked away and blinked a couple of times. "Thousands of people in the hospital and I wanted you."

She looked down and ate her salad quietly. "A couple years ago, I went to Florida with Taylor, Chad, and Bree. I was getting Chad but he was on the phone with you, he asked you how Lizzy Gabrielle was." I looked at her, she had a small smile on her face. "I was so jealous of whoever this girl was, I was about to fly to New Mexico and scratch her eyes out." I let out a chuckle, she just glared at me. "And then I felt really stupid when he told me that Lizzy Gabrielle was your sister."

"I remember when Elizabeth was born like it was yesterday." I said smiling. "My mom went into labor when dad was at work. So it was just me and her. I almost shit myself. I think I sped to the hospital and I waited for my dad. When he came in, he was so excited. We didn't know if it was a boy or a girl. But my dad picked the names. Elizabeth for a girl and Noah for a boy." Gabi Awed. "Mom got to pick the middle names. I remember I wanted to call you so bad. Chad was so annoyed with me that I didn't. I just figured you hated me."

"I never hated you." Gabi said, interrupting me. She put her fork on her plate and pushed it off to the side.

I shrugged. "I didn't know that. Then Liz was born and she small. I was afraid I would break her. And I asked mom what her middle name was and she didn't want to tell me. Gabrielle. After you, because you were a part of all of our lives." I felt her leg brush against mine under the table. "Then I asked her what Emma's middle name was."

"What was it?" Gabi asked, running her leg along mine slowly.

"Lynn, after Chad's mom." I chuckled. "My mom…"

"I miss your mom so much. She's like the mom I wish I had." She looked over.

"Here you go." Talia said putting our plates in front of us. She put cheese on her pasta and on my soup. We started eating quietly.

"I'm in the process of buying the house on the lake." I said quietly.

Her head shot up. "Really? Did you ever find out who the owner was?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I did."

"Who was it?" Gabi asked, licking her fork clean.

"An old man named Benjamin Lozano. He passed way before we even started high school. His daughter lived in Michigan but she came back to Albuquerque two years ago. She sold it to a real estate company and I'm in the process of buying it back." I put my spoon in my mouth then back in the bowl.

"How much?" She asked, putting her fork back in her pasta.

"A little under a million." I said looking at her.

Her eyes buldged out of her head. "A million?!"

I nodded. "I'm trying to get them to shave down the price since I am the only one who is interested in it, besides I haven't even looked in it to see how much work needs to be done."

"But you do that for a living. Like building houses right?" She asked.

"Yeah, build, remodel. We do some streets. We work on complexes. We pretty much do everything." I said nodding. "I have a team of one hundred."

"Jesus Troy." She said before taking a drink. She was quiet for a minute. "Why did you buy Albuquerque Rocks?"

"I knew how much it meant to you. Doug took care of it but he wasn't your Papa Rocks. He did the best he could, keeping things how they were. He wanted to retire and he had a couple of offers but he and my dad were close he trusted to sell it to me. I couldn't see somebody run it into the ground." I said.

It got quiet again and I finished eating my soup. I got more salad and I ate some while I watched her eat. She swirled her pasta on her fork and she put the fork in her mouth. She put the fork down on her plate. "I am so full." She said groaning.

Talia brought the check and I put my card in the holder and gave it back to her. "Are you happy?" I asked her after Talia walked away.

"With what?" She asked, looking at me.

I shrugged. "I don't know. Everything."

"Everything? No." She said. "School? Yes. My parents? Eh. Relationships? I don't know." Talia brought back the holder and I put my card back in my wallet. I signed the receipt. and I put my wallet in my pocket and picked up a mint. "Are you happy?" Gabi asked me.

"I haven't been happy in a long time. I've had moments of happiness but they've never lasted." I said. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah." She took a sip of her drink and slid out of the booth. I got out and walked with Gabi out of the restaurant. We walked over to the truck and I helped her in. I climbed in the truck and put my seat belt on. "Can you hang out for a while?"

"Yeah, Jen is meandering through the City." I said turning on the truck. "Where are we going?"

"I'll direct you." I nodded. I started driving on the main road. "Left at the light." She directed. We ended in front of an apartment building. "You can park in guest parking, right there." She pointed.

I parked in the space and turned off the car. "What are we doing here?"

"I live here Troy." She said climbing out of the truck. "Shit. Can you get my books?"

I chuckled. "Yes." I grabbed her things and got out of the truck. I closed the door and handed Gabi her things. We walked up to her apartment. There was a note on the door. "From Sam?" I assumed.

"Yeah." She said shortly, stuffing the note in her pocket. She opened the door and I walked into her small apartment. "It's not much but it gets the job done."

"It's nice, it reminds me of my apartment back home." I sat on her couch. "Can't live with my parents forever."

She nodded. "I understand." She put her books down and sat down next to me.

I sat back and studied Gabi's face. "You're still as beautiful as ever." I put a piece of hair behind her ear.

She blushed. "Thank you." I felt a phone vibrate. I reached for my pockets. My phone wasn't in there. "That's me." She said, pulling out her phone.

"Oh alright." I watched her as she sent a text message. "Could you call my phone? It might have slipped in the couch."

"Yeah sure." She said, scrolling in her phone.

_"Please enjoy the music while your party is reached:_  
_She's the one that got away, _  
_the one that wrecked my heart._  
_I should've never let her go. _  
_I should've begged her to stay_  
_She was the one that got away."_

"You know what. I think I left it in the truck I'll be right back." I walked out of her apartment and down to my truck. I opened the door and found it on my seat. I picked it up and checked it. I was about to put It in my pocket when it started ringing again. "Hello?"

"Hello Mr. Bolton, this is Jason Lopez from Albuquerque Reality. You inquired about a house off highway 95." A man's voice said.

"Yes, sir." I replied leaning against the truck.

"Well we have got your offer of 850,000 and we have decided to lower it to that price. If you are still interested the house and surrounding property is yours." Mr. Lopez said.

"Fantastic. I am out of town at the moment but when I get back in. I will be down to sign the paperwork." I said with a smile on my face.

"We will be in touch soon Mr. Bolton." He hung up.

I put my phone in my pocket and ran back into the building. I walked up the stairs and saw Sam standing in front of Gabi's door. I stood off to the side and watched them interact. "You know I left class early to go meet you Gabriella. I find you hanging out with Mr. Big Truck. I felt so stupid Gabriella." I raised my eyebrows.

"I never expect you to come pick me up or to open doors with me. I've been taking care of myself for a long time. I don't need somebody else to take care of me Sam. You know you are so smart but you are so immature." Gabi countered, crossing her arms.

"Well I'm sorry if I like you Gabriella. I'm sorry if I want to be a gentleman." Sam said.

Gabi shook her head at him and sighed. "Look Sam, I don't think this is going anywhere. I thought I liked you and I do, but just as a friend. I'm sorry."

Sam sighed. "It's fine. I understand. I guess I'll see you around Gabriella." Sam turned around and pushed past me.

Gabi looked at me and I raised my eyebrows back at her. She put her hand on her forehead and shook her head. I chuckled quietly and I walked over to her. "You alright Gabs?"

She nodded. "I'm fine." I wrapped my arms around her tightly. Her head fell against my chest.

"On the positive side, I just got a call from Albuquerque reality and I got the house with 150,000 dollars shaved off the price." I said with a smile.

She pulled away from me and smiled. 'That's great Troy!"

"I'm excited. I have a lot of work to do though." I said.

"Come inside." She pulled me in and closed the door behind us. I walked over and took a seat on the couch. Gabi sat on the couch next to me. She leaned against me.

"Do you want to know a secret?" I asked her.

Gabi looked up at me and smiled. "What is it?"

"I was extremely jealous of Sam. When I saw you kiss him at your dad's speech. I wanted to kick his ass." I said huskily.

She bit her bottom lip. "Really? Troy Bolton was jealous?"

"Hey, hey. My pride is already hurt enough for admitting it." I joked.

She rolled her eyes at me and smiled. Gabi's head rested on my chest. My arm wrapped around her shoulder. She let out a content sigh. "I missed you."

"I missed you too." I replied. I planted a kiss in her dark hair.

* * *

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	34. Something Like That

**Troy's POV**

I blinked my eyes open and sat up and looked around. I let out a tired yawn. I smelled coffee and pancakes. I was definitely not in the hotel. San Francisco. Gabi. That's right. Gabi and I were watching movies and I must have fell asleep.

"Good morning, Sleepy head." Gabi said from behind me somewhere. I sat up and she was walking over in an old East High basketball shirt and some barely visible shorts. Her legs looked fantastic. I shifted my pants uncomfortably. That's the last thing you need Troy. Morning wood. "I brought you some coffee."

She bent over in front of me, putting two mugs on the table. Dear god. Her ass. I closed my eyes and sat up on the couch. "Thank you Gabi." I gathered the blanket on my lap.

"No problem. I made breakfast too." She said before waking away.

"Dear god are you trying to kill me?" I mumbled under my breath as she walked away.

She stopped and turned back to me. "Did you say something?" I shook my head and picked up a mug. I took a sip of the coffee before setting it down. She came back over with two plates and she handed one to me.

"Don't you have school?" I asked before taking a bite.

"My first class is at noon." She said looking at the time. "It's only 8:30."

"Wow, I slept in. " I said winking.

"What times do you work?" She asked, kicking her feet up on the couch.

"Get up at 5, I'm at work by six and most of the time I don't get off until 6 in the afternoon. Unless I work a split shift. Then 6 to noon and I go back at 3 and I don't get back home until 10. It depends on the day." I said as I continued eating.

She watched me as I ate. "I bet any woman would love to have a sexy, sweaty construction worker to come home to her."

I chuckled. "If only." I said, picking up my coffee. "Maybe I'll settle down one day. I'm just focused on work. I'm helping my parents save up for college for Liz. I want her to have the chance to go anywhere in the world and not have to worry about the money."

"You're a great big brother." She murmured.

"I try." I smiled and picked up my fork and finished eating the breakfast she made me. "Thank you for breakfast." I said before leaning over and kissing her cheek slowly. I got up and turned away from her to re position myself. "You all done?" She nodded and handed me the plate. I walked into the kitchen and placed it in the sink.

"You could just leave them there. I'll get them later." Gabi said from the couch and I walked back to her. I sat back down.

"I never knew you had that shirt." I said, my eyes drifting down the my old shirt. I looked back up at her.

Her cheeks turned red. "I can't sleep without it." She said shyly. "I have one of your hoodies too."

"They look better on you then on me so I can't complain." I said chuckling. I let out a sigh and picked up my coffee. I finished my cup and set it on the table. "I guess I should head back to the hotel. I think I'm going to head back a little early. I have to work on the house."

"Oh, alright. You can stay a little longer if you'd like." She offered.

I smiled. "I should go now because if I stayed any longer I would never want to leave." I stood up and put my phone and my wallet in my pockets.

"Will you call me before you leave?" She asked, getting up next to me.

"I can, if you want me to." I told her, smoothing down my shirt.

"I do. I want you too. I'll call you tonight." She said quietly. "Thanks for hanging out."

I smiled at her. "It was my pleasure, really." I took her hand in one of mine, lacing my fingers in between hers. I pulled her against me and wrapped her in a tight hug. I put my chin on the top of her head and closed my eyes. She wore the same perfume as she did eight years ago. As much as I didn't want to I pulled away from her slowly. "I'll talk to you later."

She nodded silently and walked me to her door. "I'll talk to you later." She repeated before she opened the door. "Bye Troy."

I leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Bye sweetheart." I winked at her before walking down to my truck.

I drove back to the hotel. I got showered and changed. I called Jen's Cell. _"Where have you been?"_ She asked.

I chuckled. "I was at a friend's. I fell asleep. But I have great news. I got the house."

_"That's great Troy!"_ She said enthusiastically. _"Do I need to do anything?"_

"Yes. I need a flight tomorrow afternoon. You can come or you can stay until tomorrow. I don't mind. Once I get back to Albuquerque I am going to go to Albuquerque reality and sign some papers. I need you to find some reptile specialists and I need them to inspect the house along with exterminators. That will probably take 48 hours I presume." I said estimating.

_"That sounds about right."_ She said, I heard her scribbling things down. _"Continue."_

"I want someone to landscape the surrounding areas because the shrubbage needs to me trimmed down. Then Next week I will initially go in the house and start dealing with the things. I need you to get the number of the daughter of the guy you found that owned the house. I'm going to see if she wants anything that is in the house. We will have a house inspector come in after we cleared everything out. By we I mean movers. Hire somebody." I instructed.

_"Flight, reptile specialist, exterminators, Landscapers, daughter's number, movers, inspector"_ She listed. _"Got it, anything else?"_

"And could you send some flowers to the address I'm about to text you. Something pretty. Preferably orange, that will last a long time." I said. "With a simple, Love Troy."

_"Oh, was it that girl we saw the other day. Brunette, short, with the blonde douchey looking guy."_ She said with a laugh.

"Exactly." I said smiling, thinking about Gabi. "Send to Gabriella Montez."

_"Oh!"_ She said like she had a revelation. _"That is Gabriella."_

I furrowed my eyebrows. "Why did you say it like that?"

_"Because you told me the Gabrielle on your arm was for your sister."_ She said. I could hear her smirk. _"I wasn't stupid I knew it said GabriellA not GabriellE and if it was for your sister it would be her first name not her middle name. You will have to tell me later."_

"Goodbye Jenifer." I said before hanging up. I sent over Gabi's address and collapsed on the bed.

I was out and about for the rest of the day taking care of business. I met with a couple contractors around town. I got stopped by a couple of guys for autographs. Most people don't remember me but the die hard basketball fans always say hi.

I got back to the hotel and changed into something more comfortable. I packed up most of my things except for clothes for tomorrow. I laid on the hotel bed turning on the TV. I started drifting off until I felt my vibrating phone on my chest. "Hello?" I asked sleepily.

_"Oh, no. Did I wake you up?"_ Gabi's sweet voice said from the other side of the line.

"I was just dozing off, I'm awake now. I promise." I sat up and blinked my eyes. "How was your day?"

_"It was good. I got the beautiful flowers you sent me."_ She said. _"Thank you for them."_

"It's the least I could do, for breakfast… and stuff." I said, scratching the back of my neck. "I'm glad you liked them though."

She smacked her lips. _"Did you decide when your going to go?"_

I nodded to myself. "I'm leaving tomorrow morning… Well afternoon. The earlier flight Jen found was at two but I'll be there at 11."

_"Ah, I see."_ She said. _"Did you like San Francisco?"_

"I did, I'm not much of a city guy but I would definitely come back here, to the Bay Area." I said, smiling.

She giggled. _"Oh, yeah? Why is that?"_

"Because the most beautiful woman in the world lives there." I said, laying back down.

_"I'm jealous."_ She said, quietly. _"She must be pretty special."_

"Oh, she is. She's always fishing for complements." I said chuckled.

Gabi scoffed. _"She does not fish for complements!"_

I laughed. "Alright, alright."

_"What is her name? I might know her."_ She said.

"Princess Gabi." I chuckled.

_"Of course, Princess Gabi, how could I forget?"_ She giggled and sighed quietly. _"I can not wait to graduate in May."_

"You only have a couple of months to go Gab." I said encouragingly.

_"When you go back, I want to keep in touch with you. I don't want to not be able to talk to you. We have eight years to catch up for."_ She said quietly. _"Will you call me sometimes?"_

"Only if you call me too." I said. "Of course I will keep in touch with you. I missed you too."

She let out a breath of relief. _"Okay, good."_

"Don't worry about it Gab." I said quietly. "I'm sure I will annoy you with my phone calls."

_"You could never."_ She said. _"You know what I miss?"_

"What's that?" I asked.

_"Your boat. Going out on the lake. Fishing. Skipping rocks. Carnivals."_ She listed. _"The summer I had with you was the best summer of my life."_

"None of those things have been the same without you. I hadn't caught a fish in eight years." I said, sighing.

_"What happened to Bella?"_ She asked slowly.

"Bella" I let out a chuckle. "My parents fell in love with her and they still have her. They wouldn't let me take her to my apartment. I'm not home enough. They take good care of her. Lizzy loves Bella."

_"That's good. I'm glad she's doing good. She was the cutest puppy ever. I had to get her for you."_ She said giggling. _"She was so wrinkly."_

I chuckled. "She still is."

_"I miss her."_ She said with a sigh. _"I think I might go out there, for spring break for something."_

"Yeah, you can stay with me. Or my mom would be more than happy to have you. You can meet Liz." A big smile broke out on my face. "You could see the house."

She giggled. _"It sounds like a plan then."_

"Good, I'm excited now. I'm looking forward to that. When is your spring break?" I asked.

_"um, Last week of march."_ She said. She sighed. _"I can't wait."_

"Me either." I said quietly. "I'm so glad I got to see you, even though we didn't start on the right foot."

_"Yeah, too many built up emotions."_ She said. I licked my lips. _"You look good. Your hair looks nice short."_

I chuckled. "Thank you. You look good too. I miss your long hair but your short hair is cute too."

_"Well, I just might have to grow it out again."_ She said, giggling. I bit my bottom lip. _"Is your butt still white?"_

I laughed. "I don't know. You'll have to find out."

_"Maybe I will."_ She said flirtatiously. I stifled a yawn. _"What am I boring you?"_

"You could never bore me Gabriella." I said with a chuckle. "Just a certain girl kept me up last night to watch movies."

_"Yeah! Which you fell asleep in the middle of. I didn't have the heart to wake you and I couldn't move you."_ She giggled. _"You still look so cute when you sleep."_

"God, do you still have that picture?" I asked.

_"No."_ She voice hardened. _"Katherine took the liberty of taking all the pictures of you out of the box I had packed of pictures."_

"Wow." I said. I shook my head. "I'm sorry."

_"I don't even want to talk about it."_ Gabi said. _"Anyway. Are you flying out of SFO?"_

"Yeah, terminal 3. Gate 13." I told her. "Why? Are you going to come by and give me a goodbye kiss?"

Gabi laughed. _"I don't know. I was thinking about it."_ I smiled. _"I guess you'll have to wait and see."_

"Alright, I'll wait for my kiss before I go through security." Gabi giggled quietly. "You better not leave me hanging."

I could imagine her rolling her eyes. _"We'll see."_

We were quiet for a minute. I looked at the ceiling of my hotel room. "Gabi, you still there?" I asked quietly.

_"Yeah."_ She replied. _"When you called me sweetheart my stomach went crazy with butterflies. You are the only person who can make me feel like that."_

I smiled to myself. "I know the feeling. You have the same effect on me"

_"I never stopped."_ Gabi said.

"Neither have I. I will always love you." I admitted quietly. "You were my first love, and a heart doesn't forget something like that."

Gabi giggled quietly. _"Can you relate everything back to a country song?"_

I chuckled. "Always." I cleared my throat.

"It was Labor day weekend I was 17.  
I bought a coke and some gasoline  
And I drove out to the county fair.  
When I saw her for the first time.  
She was standing there in the ticket line.  
And it all started right then and there.  
Oh, a sailor's sky made a perfect sunset  
And that's a day I'll never forget.  
I had a barbeque stain on my white t-shirt.  
She was killing me in that mini skit.  
Skippin rocks on the river by the rail road tracks.  
She had a suntan line and red lipstick  
I worked so hard for that first kiss"

Gabi giggled. _"And a heart don't forget, something like that."_

"It should have said. 'When I saw her for the first time she ran into me and got mustard all over my shirt.' that would be more appropriate." I said chuckling.

_"Oh shush."_ She said giggling. Gabi yawned into the phone. _"I'm tired."_ she admitted quietly.

"You should go to sleep. Oh, and you don't have to come to the airport, I was just joking with you." I said, closing my eyes.

_"I know. I should probably go. I have to be up early tomorrow."_ Gabi said.

"I will talk to you soon." I said. "Have a good night Gabs."

_"Goodnight Troy."_ She replied before hanging up.

* * *

I packed up my things and headed out to the airport. I gave the truck back to the rental company. I really liked that truck, I might have to get one when I get home. I got to the airport by shuttle and checked in my luggage. I walked over to the star bucks and I got a coffee. I walked over to a seat and read the paper.

I finished my coffee and threw it away. I folded up the news paper and put it back on the table. "You look like an old man." A voice said from in front of me.

I looked up and smiled. "I am not an old man." I told Gabi.

"You looked like one with your coffee and your news paper." She giggled and sat down on the bench next to me. "I thought I wasn't going to make it. I rushed over from school."

"I'm glad you could come." I said, smiling. "I have another 30 minutes before I absolutely have to go in. Are you hungry?" I asked, putting my hand on her knee.

"A little bit. Are you?" Gabi asked, looking up at me.

"Let's get a little something to eat." We got a snack and ate it while we were looking through the little shops.

"Oh, you have to get this." Gabi said, picking up a hat with the Golden Gate on top.

I chuckled. "I don't know." I took it from her and tried it on. "how does it look?"

Gabi giggled and nodded. "It fits you."

"I think I'm going to get it." I said chuckling. "Do you want anything?"

Gabi shook her head giggling. "I'm good on my San Francisco tourist items."

I rolled my eyes and paid for the hat. I put in the hat in the bag. "We better start heading back." I wrapped my arm around her shoulder. We walked back towards the security gate.

"Are you excited to go back home?" Gabi asked, looking up at me.

"I've only been gone for 5 days." I turned to face her. "Do you miss LA?"

She shrugged. "Sometimes. Just my dad and Bree. She got married. It's weird."

"Bree got married? That's good. I'm happy for her." I said smiling.

"Me too, but I miss her." Gabi shrugged. "You should probably go, you don't want to miss your flight."

I sighed and nodded. "I should. The line is piling up."

"What? No first class?" She teased.

I rolled my eyes. "Why would I ride first class when I could fly economy perfectly fine?"

Gabi smiled and shook her head at me. "Only you Troy, only you."

"What can I say? I'm one of a kind." I winked at her.

She smiled up at me, running her fingers through my hair. "That you are Troy Bolton." I looked down at her lips. She licked her lips slowly, teasing me. I put my hands on either side of her face and stepped closer to her. I connected our lips firmly in a long over-due kiss. She let out a small moan as her tongue brushed along my lip. I met her tongue with mine, holding her against me.

I moved my hands from her face to her waist, pulling her closer to me. Gabi pulled away slowly. I stood with my eyes closed for a minute. "With a kiss like that, I can't leave yet." I said huskily. I opened my eyes and Gabi's eyes fluttered open not long after.

My heart pounded in my ears. My eyes met Gabi's and A smile formed on her face. "Then don't." She said simply. "We should get out of here before I rip your clothes off." Gabi said looking at my lips.

I raised my eyebrows and I laced my fingers with Gabi's, walking out of the airport. We made it to her car and I got in. Once she sat down, I connected my lips with hers firmly. "God. I missed you." I mumbled against her lips.

She tore her lips away from mine and started the car. She drove out of the parking lot and onto the freeway. "When we get to my apartment, your pants are coming off." She said, glancing over at me.

"Mhm." I agreed, leaning over to kiss her neck slowly. She shuddered as my tongue flicked her earlobe. She started to drive a little faster. She ran her hand through my hair then dropping to my lap. Her small hand was rubbing circles in my inner thigh slowly. "Gabi." I warned quietly.

"Mmm, what?" She smiled at me innocently and she brushed her fingertips along the crotch of my pants. She got off of the freeway and stopped at a red light. She unzipped my pants, slowly, looking at the light. She stuck her hand in my pants and glanced at me. I was gripping the handle of the car, looking at Gabi. "I forgot how big you were."

My pants were very uncomfortable, constricting me. The light turned green and Gabi drove down the street. She turned in front of a drug store and got out quickly. I adjusted myself and zipped up my pants. I ran my hand through my hair and Gabi came back in and tossed a bag in. "What's this?" I asked, opening the bag. "Oh, condoms." I smirked and closed the bag.

"I don't have any and we are going to need them." Gabi said, driving off. We got back to her apartment and she parked in her spot. She got out. "Come on, Troy."

* * *

Don't forget to review ;)


	35. Hell on Heels

**Hey guys. This one came up a little early because i didn't feel like going to school today. Lol. I just wanted to say that i love you guys and your reviews crack me up. They definately make my day much better. I just might happen to maybe put the second chaper/sequel to Alone With You up today. Later though. We will see though. I hope all is well with you guys. Enjoy. :)**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

I opened the door and waited for Troy to climb up the stairs. I grabbed his shirt and pulled him inside. He threw the his bag on the couch. I took the bag from the drug store and put the box of condoms in my room. I turned around and Troy wrapped his arms around me. I connected my lips to his again. I lifted his shirt up and he pulled it off breaking the kiss for a second.

I pushed him down on the bed and straddled his lap. He pulled his lips away from me. "Wait, wait, wait." Troy said sitting up. He pulled out his phone and called somebody. "Hey mom, you don't have to pick me up… I didn't catch my flight… I'll come in tomorrow. I'll call you… that's fine I'll catch a cab… I love you bye." He hung up. "Just one more."

I groaned and stood up. I pulled him up and unhooked his belt. I pulled it out quickly and threw it. "Hurry up."

"Hello Jen?" Troy said. I unbuttoned and unzipped his pants pulling them down. "I didn't make my flight." I pulled down his boxers and he stepped out of his clothes. I dropped to my knees. "Something came up." Troy said. I wrapped my hand around his penis and he sucked in a breath. "Yeah, I'm f-fine." I licked the head, stroking his penis with the palm of my hand. "Dear god… I'm flying out tomorrow like I originally planned. Fuck." I let out a quiet giggle. I enclosed my mouth around him, stroking quickly. I bobbed my head up and down. "L-look, Jen. I have to g-go. Bye." He hung up the phone and I released him.

"Good you're done." I said standing up, smirking.

He raised his eyebrows at me. "You are very over dressed."

"What are you going to do about it?" I asked, looking at him. He just stared at me. "Do I have to do it my self?" I lifted off my shirt and I threw it at him. He sat on the bed and pulled me close to him. He kissed my stomach slowly. His stubble scratching my stomach lightly. His tongue flicked over my belly button ring. I shuddered. He sat up and pushed me on the bed. He unzipped my jeans and pulled them off of me

"You are so sexy." He mumbled kissing up my thigh slowly. He pulled my thong off and tossed it somewhere. I arched my back to unhook my bra. He took it off and threw it on the floor. "You're so beautiful." He climbed on top of me putting his hands on my boobs. I moaned quietly as he sucked on my nipple slowly, moving to the other one. I reached down and grabbed his erection, pumping it slowly.

I pulled his mouth up to mine kissing his lips firmly. I wrapped one leg around his waist. He reached over and handed me the box of condoms. His finger brushed over my clit slowly, I let out a small moan. "I'm so wet baby." I opened the box and ripped one off the column. He slipped a finger into me and I threw my head back. "Fuck." I muttered quietly.

He climbed off me and I stood up. I opened the condom wrapper and I unrolled it on him. He laid back on the bed and I climbed on top of him. I kissed his lips firmly. His lips trailed down my neck firmly. He found a sensitive spot on my neck and sucked firmly. He rolled back on top of me and put his hands on my boobs. He played with my nipples. He released my neck. "I missed you so much." He murmured quietly as he rubbed the tip of his covered penis against my clit slowly. "I love you Sweetheart." He plunged himself inside of me slowly.

I let out a small gasp as he filled me. I shut my eyes tightly. I grabbed the top of his hair with one hand and I dug my nails in his back with the other. "I love you. I love you so much." I said quietly. I covered his lips with mine as he thrust in me slowly. He took his time pushing himself into me slowly. I wrapped my legs around him, pushing him deeper into me. "I needed you so bad." I opened my eyes to see him staring down at me.

I rolled my hips against his slowly. "I love you so much." I squeezed my walls against him, he let out a deep groan. "I missed your lips, I missed your soft touches, I missed you." He murmured, running his tongue along my neck slowly. "I could never love anybody the way I love you." He started to pick up the pace. I let out another moan. I grabbed his shoulders. "I am so in love with you. Even after eight years. I am hopelessly in love with you." He said huskily as he rubbed my clit slowly with his fingers.

"Faster baby." I begged. "Deeper." He started to pound into me. "Oh fuck, yes baby." I threw my head back and pressed my chest against his. I picked up my hips getting a better angle. He rubbed my clit quickly. He pushed himself into me hitting the right spots. I let out a cry. "I'm gonna come baby, make me come."

He pounded into me, hitting my spot repeatedly. I felt my walls clench as I released. I moaned out his name. My legs trembled as I rode it out. He let out a groan as he reached his peak. He thrusted in me a couple more times. He collapsed on top of me. I ran my fingers through his hair, as we laid there dazed from our high. Troy's head was on my chest. I could feel my heart pounding. He pulled out of me, taking off the condom and throwing it away. I cuddled up against him, once he laid back down. "I love you." He said quietly kissing my forehead.

"I love you too." I kissed his chest gently. He played with my hair, curling my hair around his finger. He ran his fingers down my back slowly. I kicked my leg on top of his. Troy grabbed a handful of my ass. I giggled quietly. "It's not as nice as it was 8 years ago."

Troy chuckled. "What are you talking about? It is so sexy. So are your legs. God, when I woke up on your couch and you walked in with those little shorts and my shirt on. I was ready to fuck you right then and there." He pulled me on top of him. I sat up. He started to get hard again against my thigh. "Time definitely did your body well." He reached up and fondled my breasts.

I bit my bottom lip and watched him play with me. I let out a shaky breath. I rocked my hips against him slowly. "I want to ride you so bad."

"Ride me baby. I want to watch your tits bounce up and down." He said huskily, touching my body. I stopped grinding against him and I just stared at him. He wasn't much for dirty talk but it definitely turned my on. He looked back up at me. "What? With eight years of sexual frustration its hard to keep a guy modest."

I giggled quietly. "I didn't say anything." I leaned down and kissed his lips firmly. "Besides your dirty talk is turning me on." I trailed my tongue along his chest slowly. I scooted up on the bed and reached over and grabbed the box of condoms. I felt his hands grab my ass and pull me down. His tongue ran down my folds slowly. "Jesus." I let out a breath and grabbed my headboard.

His tongue worked its way around my clit slowly. Troy's tongue plunged into me. I arched my back, shutting my eyes. I ripped another condom off the strand and placed the box back on my night stand. I sat up and my put hands over my breasts, pinching my nipples lightly. I looked down at him and his blue eyes met mine. "You taste so good baby." His lips rumbled against my clit, causing another sensation.

I slid down his body slowly, sitting on his thighs. I rolled the condom on to his penis. I played with his balls and looked up at him. "Was I your last?" I asked him. I placed open mouth kissed along his chest slowly. "Well before 10 minutes ago."

Troy chuckled. "Yes. My last time I had sex was in the front seat of my truck. With my beautiful girlfriend bouncing on my dick." He murmured, looking at me. I bit my lip and leaned up to place a kiss on his lips. "That memory got me through a lot of hard nights."

I smiled. "Good. Sit up." He did as I instructed. "Now kiss me." He pushed his lips against mine without hesitation. I guided his penis into me, sitting on his lap. I slowly bounced up and down on him. Troy pushed his tongue into my mouth, massaging it against mine slowly. I pulled away from him slowly and pushed him down on the bed.

After a night full of love making we had a quickie and a shower before I had to take him to the airport. I locked my apartment and walked down stairs where Troy was waiting. I got in the car and kissed his swollen lips firmly. He smiled and pulled away. He spread his fingers out on my knee. "I definitely can not wait until spring break." I said.

He chuckled. "Me either. I just might have to make another visit before then." He pulled me back over to him and kissed my lips firmly. "Mmm, I missed those."

"Me too." I mumbled against his lips, giving him one last kiss before I turn on the car. I started driving up to the airport. I turned on the radio and I started singing along to the radio.

"I'm hell on heels say what you will  
I done made the devil a deal.  
He made me pretty, he made me smart  
I'm gonna break me a million hearts.  
I'm hell on heels  
Baby I'm coming for you!"

I poked Troy's leg. He rolled his eyes at me and chuckled. "I'm your sugar daddy now?" He asked chuckling.

I nodded. "Well of course." I winked at him. "You take care of me, and I'll take care of you." I said, running my hand over his crotch.

"Gabi, I have to go home sometime." Troy said groaning.

I giggled and put both hands on the steering wheel. "I know baby, I know." I got off the freeway and turned into the airport. I parked the car and got out of the car. I walked over to Troy and I laced my fingers in between his as we walked inside the airport. I looked up at him and smiled. "Are you going to miss me?"

He looked down at me and smiled. "After yesterday… and this morning. I think it will be impossible not to miss you sweetheart." He kissed my hand and smiled. "I love you."

"I love you too." I said as he pulled me into his arms. We walked into the terminal and we took a seat.

"Jen is coming on the plane with me and if I know here she'll be here in-" He started.

"Hey Troy." Jenifer said walking up. "What happened yesterday?" She took a seat across from us.

"Now." Troy finished and I giggled. Jenifer looked at us confused. "Nothing, nothing. Something just came up and I couldn't not see it through." Jenifer nodded over at me. "Right Right, Jenifer this is Gabriella Montez, Gabs this is my assistant Jenifer."

I smiled at the woman. "Nice to meet you."

"The pleasure is mine. It's nice to finally meet the famous Gabriella." Jen said with a polite smile.

Troy rolled his eyes. "Did you like San Francisco, Jenifer?" I asked her.

She nodded. "Yes it's such a beautiful city. I want to come back soon."

"You should!" I said smiling. "you should bring Troy with you, if I know him, he is always working too hard."

She laughed and nodded. "He definitely does."

"I'm right here." Troy said, chuckling.

I giggled and rubbed his head gently. "We know, honey, we know."

"We should get going soon, Troy. We don't want to miss the flight." Jen said standing up.

I got up as well. "She's right, you have to get back home."

"Alright, Jen I'll meet you at the gate." He said looking at his assistant.

"If you're not there in 10 minutes I am dragging you over by your ear." Jen said. She turned to me. "It's nice to meet you Gabriella."

"Nice to meet you too Jenifer." I smiled before she walked away. I turned to Troy. "She seems nice."

"She is but she can kick my ass, she's like the blonde version of Taylor." Troy said chuckling. He wrapped his arms around me. I stuffed something into his back pocket but he didn't notice. I pulled his lips down to mine and kissed his lips firmly. "I'm going to miss you so much."

I smiled and pulled away from him grabbing his hands. "I'm going to miss you too, but I will see you soon, I promise. Give your mom my number and tell her to call me. Oh, and I love you." I leaned up to kiss his lips again.

"I love you too and I will do. I'll see you soon." He kissed my forehead. "Bye sweetheart." I bit my lip as my stomach fluttered.

"Bye honey," I gave him another kiss and He walked away slowly. I pulled out my phone and texted him.

_"Check your back pocket ;)"_

I watched him as he pulled out his phone and checked it. He stuffed his hand into his pocket and froze. I could imagine the look on his face when he felt the lace thong in his pocket. He pulled his hand out of his pocket. My phone vibrated.

_"Are you trying to kill me?"_ He texted me back.

I giggled to my self. _"Just something to remember me by baby."_ I put my phone in my pocket and walked back to my car.

When I got back to my apartment I grabbed my books and headed for class. I got to class a little bit late and I sat next to Lena. She eyed me and leaned over toward me. "You look thoroughly fucked." She whispered to me. "I would ask if it was Sam but he looks like his dog just got hit by a car."

I blushed and looked over at Sam who was looking at me then quickly looked away. "Things with Sam weren't going to work out anyway." I said looking over at Lena.

"How come?" She asked confused.

I let out a content sigh. "Because he is not Troy." Lena let out a small squeal. It was loud enough to capture the attention of half the class. I put my palm on my forehead. "Lena!" I hissed.

"Sorry. I thought you guys were just friends and I was totally trying to flirt with him! You have to tell me what happened. I'm very intrigued." Lena whispered next to me.

"I'll tell you later." I said, turning my attention to the Professor who started speaking. After class I ran to my car, avoiding Lena. I got in and my phone rang.

_"Hey Bitch!"_ I heard as I answered the call. _"I have some news."_ Bree sang on the phone.

"Oh honey, me too." I said, turning off the car. I locked my doors. "You go first though."

She squealed in excitement. _"First, I wanted to say. I fucking miss you. When are you coming down to see me? And secondly, I'm pregnant."_

"I'll come down to see you soo-" Then it hit me. "What? Your PREGNANT?" I squealed. "How far along? Have you told Rob yet?"

_"Of course I have! He is so excited."_ She said, squealing again. _"I'm 6 weeks today. I'm so excited. You'll be the god mother okay? Please?"_

I smiled. "Of course I will."

_"Okay, so tell me your news!"_ Bree said excitedly.

I let out a sigh. "How am I supposed to follow that?" I sighed. "Okay, well let's start from the beginning. Dad came down to do a big speech. I was dating Sam, remember the guy I told you about? Anyway. We went to go see him and at the end I went to go talk to him. Sam had to leave and who was standing right behind me? Troy fucking Bolton." I said biting my lip.

_"No Shit!"_ She yelled. _"Tell me, what happened after."_

"I was being an emotional little bitch and I walked out to the parking garage and he followed me. I start yelling at him and we go into this huge fight. Then he took off and I couldn't sleep that night. Then Sam came over Sunday and we went out to pier 39. I was having a good time but Sam looked bored. I went into the sock store and I was looking at some cute cow socks" I said.

_"Ohh! I love socks!"_ Bree interrupted. I giggled quietly.

"Anyway. Troy was there and he was getting the same pair for his sister. We started talking and Sam went off somewhere. We apologized and exchanged phone numbers and went our separate ways. Then when I got home I accidentally called him" I said sighing. "I hung up and he called me back and we talked for like at least 4 hours. Then I went to school the next day and he surprised me and picked me up. We went out to lunch and kept talking. Then we went back to my apartment"

_"Oh my god, you guys fucked!"_ She said with a squeal.

I laughed. "Would you let me finish my story?"

_"Sorry, sorry. Continue."_ Bree said.

"We watch a couple movies and he fell asleep on my couch and I went to bed and the next morning I made him breakfast. He had to go so he left and he told me he bought a new house so he was leaving the next day. So I rushed over after school and I surprised him. Then when he was about to go He kissed me." I bit my lip at the memory. Bree squealed. "Full on make out in the middle of the airport. He didn't want to leave so I took him back to my apartment and he pretty much fucked my brains out all night." I was getting hot and bothered thinking about it.

She let out a breath. _"You live in a soap opera. Gabs. Damn. Was he any good?"_

"He was as good as he was eight years ago… maybe even better." I let out a sigh. "So that is my life."

_"Jesus, well I have to get back to work. I love you and I'll talk to you soon."_ Bree said into the phone.

"I love you too, take care of my little god child." I said smiling. She laughed and hung up the phone.

I got back to my apartment and started catching up on my homework. I finished my paper and collapsed on the couch. I felt my phone vibrating. _"Just landed, I miss you, see you soon beautiful"_ Troy's text read.

I smiled to myself. _"Miss you too, I wish you were back in my bed. I love you."_ I sent back to him.

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	36. A couple of surprises

**Gabriella's POV**

"Hey Luce." I answered the phone. Troy's mom and I have been talking to each other a lot since Troy went back home. "I'm on my way to the airport right now."

_"What time are you coming in?"_ Lucy asked.

"I should be in Albuquerque around 4-ish." I said, driving though traffic. I got off the freeway. "Does Troy still have no idea?"

_"Nope, I can't tell Liz because she will tell him, but we are going to pick you up and take you over to his apartment to drop your stuff off. We will go from there."_ Lucy explained. _"Text me when you take off, I have to get back to work. See you later honey."_

"Bye Luce." I said hanging up. I parked my car and grabbed my luggage. I locked my car and walked into the airport. I checked my bag in and got my ticket.

I got some coffee and I walked through security. I found my terminal and sat down. "Gabriella?" I heard a voice say.

I turned around to see Katherine standing behind me. "Katherine." I said, turning around facing my back to her.

I felt her sit down next to me. "How have you been? You look beautiful." She said touching my hair. I got up and moved another seat away from her. I pulled out my iPod. "Gabriella, will you talk to me please?"

"I have nothing to say to you Katherine." I turned to her. "So if you left me alone that would be great, thank you."

"I came out here to see you, your dad said you were living in Palo Alto. You're going to Stanford?" I didn't answer her questions. "He said you were on spring break."

"I am on spring break, but I'm leaving obviously." I said. "I'm flying to Albuquerque then I have a connecting flight to Florida." I lied. "So go away."

She huffed. "Fine."

My flight was being called. "I have to go." I stood up and gathered my purse.

"Gabi, wait." Katherine said. "Here." She handed me an envelope. "I'm sorry."

I took the envelope and stuffed it in my purse and walked away. The attendant scanned my ticket and I walked down the tube slowly. I took my seat in first class and buckled my seatbelt.

Half way though the flight I pulled out the envelope and opened it. I pulled out what looked like pictures and I turned them over. I bit my bottom lip. Troy and I at the lake. I looked at the next one. Troy sleeping. I looked at the rest of the pictures. I saw a piece of paper that fell on my lap. I opened the little piece of paper.

_"Dear Gabriella,_

_I'm sorry for everything that happened. I still want to be in your life and I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me. I'm not good at admitting I was wrong but I was very wrong about a lot of things. I will always love you Gabriella, no matter what your decision is._

_Love, Mom."_

I crumpled up the paper and threw it in my purse. I put the pictures back in the envelope and stuffed it in my purse. The flight attendant handed my the Dr. Pepper I ordered five minutes ago. I drank it and looked out the window for a little bit. Somebody tapped my shoulder. I looked over and threw away my cup and put my seatbelt on as we descended.

I was excited to see Troy. I missed him. It's only been a couple months but I still missed him terribly. As soon as I could I hopped out of my seat, grabbing my purse. I power walked through the tunnel and found my way to the baggage claim.

"Mommy, why are we at the airport?" I heard from behind me.

"We're picking up Troy's friend." I heard Lucy's voice. I turned around and looked for her. "Gabriella!" I looked to my left and saw Lucy, holding a little girl.

"Mommy, who's that?" Liz asked as Lucy walked over to me. "She's pretty."

I smiled. "Hey Lucy."

"Hey, Elizabeth, this is Troy's friend Gabriella. Gabi this is Elizabeth." Lucy said, putting the girl down.

"You can call me Liz." The little girl looked up at me with her blue eyes. "You're like princess Gabi!" Her face lit up as she turned to her mom. "Like the story Troy used to tell me!"

I giggled quietly. "You're right honey." She smoothed down Liz's hair.

I walked over to the baggage claim and pulled my suitcase out as it went by. "This is all I have so, I'm ready to go."

"Gabi will you sit in the back with me?" Liz asked excitedly.

I smiled at her. "Of course." I wheeled my luggage as Lucy held Liz's hand.

"Are you excited to be back in Albuquerque?" Lucy asked looking at me.

I nodded. "I am, I missed you and Jack and Troy." We walked to her car and I put my case in the trunk. I sat in the back with Liz. "I saw Katherine today."

"What? Where?" Lucy asked as she started the car.

"At the airport in San Francisco. She gave my pictures back and some shi- crappy note." I caught myself, looking at Liz who was playing with my phone.

"Mom, can I get a phone like Gabi's?" She asked, looking up.

Lucy laughed. "Maybe when you're older honey." She looked at me in the rear view. "I'm sorry honey."

I shrugged. "It's fine, I'm just happy I got my pictures back."

We drove to a little apartment complex. "This is Troy's I have the spare key." Lucy said.

"I think I'm going to get changed into something cooler. These jeans are going to be killing me." I said looking at Lucy. She handed me the key.

"It's apartment B. Do you need any help?" Lucy asked me.

I shook my head. "I'm good, thank you." I hopped out of the car. I grabbed my suitcase and walked up the stairs. I found B and opened the door. I took a quick look around his apartment. It was very clean. I closed the door behind me and walked into his bedroom. I put my suitcase on my bed. I put some red lingerie on and a pretty dress over it. I changed into sandals and tucked my suitcase into a corner. I touched up my make up and walked back out to the car.

"That was quick!" Liz said as I got back into the car. "You look pretty Gabi."

I smiled at her. "You are very pretty too Liz."

She smiled shyly and looked out the window. I put on my seatbelt. "I'm going to call Troy, so be quiet. Especially you Elizabeth."

"Okay." She whined.

Lucy called Troy. "Hey honey… Nothing much,, just running some errands with Liz… What are you doing?… You're working on the house? How is that coming along?… That's good sweetheart… Well I guess I'll see you tomorrow for dinner." Lucy stuck her thumb up. "Alright. I love you too. Bye honey." She hung up the phone. "Perfect!"

"Is everything set up now?" I asked looking at Lucy. She nodded. "What are we going to do?"

"I'm going to drop you off at the house and you will surprise him" Lucy said simply. She started driving.

"Can I see Troy too?" Liz said, looking up at her mom.

She shook her head. "No honey, we'll see Troy and Gabi tomorrow"

I looked out the window and looked at the familiar route. I smiled to myself as passed the dirt road. She turned down the second one and drove all the way to the back. "Thank you for everything Lucy."

"No problem Gabi I'm so glad you're back" She said smiling at me.

"Me too. I'll see you tomorrow Lizzy." I said smiling.

She waved "Bye Gabi!" I got out of the car and walked up to the house. I opened the door and looked around the inside. It smelled weird but it was in the middle of construction. The floors looked new. I walked over to the stairs. I heard the radio playing. I walked up the stairs quietly. This house was fucking huge. It was definitely bigger than it looked on the outside.

"She rolled in my little sandy town,  
She spent the summer there, a couple houses down.  
Well it was magic in the air  
When she caught my eye.  
We shared three short months and one long goodbye.

She was the one that got away.  
The one that wreaked my heart.  
I should have never let her go  
I should have begged her to stay.  
She was the one that got away.  
Yeah, the one that got away."

I watched Troy sing as he painted the room a pretty light orange color. It reminded me of a cream-sicle. I leaned in the doorway and watched him.

"Well she kissed my lips down on Ocean Drive  
She set my world on fire on the fourth of July.  
We wrote our names in the sand  
Under the star soaked sky  
But it washed away like she did,  
With the rising tide."

I walked over to his radio and turned it down. He turned to me and jumped. A smile spread on my face. "I enjoyed your little show."

He dropped his paint brush and walked over to me picking me up. He wrapped me in a tight hug. "I thought you weren't supposed to come until tomorrow!" He said, placing me on the ground.

I smiled at him and put my hand on his cheek. "I had a little help from Lucy and Lizzy Bolton."

He chuckled. "Of course."

"I love this color." I said smiling, pulling away from him. "The floors look good too. Is your room done?"

He chuckled and shook his head. "I just finished the first floor, this is the first room on the second so I did this one first. There is one down stairs that's finished. I have two more here, plus the master. There's a bathroom up here and one in the master. One in the room down stairs."

I let out a breath. "Wow." I said looking at him. "This is a lot of work. When do you expect to be done?"

"I expect to be moved in at the end of the summer. Hopefully earlier." He said, pulling me back over to him. "You came all this way and I don't get a kiss?"

I shook my head. "Nope. I want to see the house." I walked away from him and down the stairs. "You coming?"

"Yeah yeah." He said before coming down the stairs shirtless. "Let me direct you." He walked in front of me and I stared at his muscular back. He turned to look at me. "Are you coming?"

"You're playing dirty." I said glaring at him. He just smirked. He took my hand and he walked me to kitchen. "Very nice."

"Yeah, it was a mess when I got it." He looked around. "It's much better now." He lead me to the living room. "This is the first living room." We walked towards the back. "This is the back living room." We walked out to the deck. "That is my lake."

I turned to him and raised my eyebrows. "Your lake?"

He nodded. "The deed had the lake and the house so I own both."

"Very convenient." I said standing in front of him. I grabbed his hands and ran his fingertips up my thighs slowly. I made sure his fingertips brushed along my lace boy shorts before I pulled away from him. "What's next? The bedroom?" I asked before walking away nonchalantly.

I found the bedroom and walked inside. I looked around and I went into the bathroom to check it out. "Do you like it so far?" Troy asked following me in the bathroom.

I nodded. "All you need is a bed." I smirked at Troy and walked out of the room. "Can I help you paint?" I asked, walking towards the stairs.

"Sure baby." He said following me up the stairs. He pinched my butt before I got to the top. I swatted his hand away.

I pushed Troy against a closed door and kissed his lips firmly. I pushed my tongue in his mouth. I rubbed his chest slowly as he snaked his arms around my waist. I wrapped my arms around his neck pulling him closer to me. He bit down on my lip as I pulled away slowly. "I missed you." I mumbled.

"I missed you too baby." He licked my bottom lip and pulled away from me. "I have to finish this room then we can go back to my apartment and take a shower and watch movies naked." He winked at me and walked back into the room.

I followed him and picked up a roller and helped him paint. We got through painting pretty quickly. Well Troy did I got bored and just sat in the middle of the floor, looking at Troy's butt. "Are we ready to go yet Bolton?"

"Calm your tits Montez." He said opening the window. He put the top back on the paint and put the paint supplies downstairs. I got up and found the master bedroom. I walked into the bathroom and looked at myself. I lifted my dress up and poke my hip bone. I needed to gain some weight. "What in the world are you doing Gabriella Montez?"

I dropped my dress and smiled innocently. "I was admiring my body, something I hope you will do soon because you're taking forever." Troy rolled his eyes.

"Come on Gab." He picked me up and lifted my over his shoulder.

"You cant do this to me! I'm wearing a dress. My ass is cold." I yelled putting my hands in his pants.

"That is from your choice of underwear. Your hands are cold." He said, running down the stairs. He put me down.

I leaned over and kissed his cheek. "When you pick me up in those strong arms, you make me so wet." I winked at him before walking out the front door. I walked over to his truck and stood by the passenger seat.

He walked out and locked up the house. He unlocked the truck and I got in. I buckled in and crossed my legs. He got in, still shirtless, and started the car. "You should give me a back massage."

"Mmm, we'll see." I sat back and he turned on the truck. He started driving. "Are you excited to be moving into this house?" I asked looking up at him.

"I am, but it's going to be lonely. I got 5 bedrooms all to myself." He got cut off by my phone ringing.

"Sorry honey." I answered the phone. "Hello?"

_"Guess what I just found out."_ Bree sang out.

I rolled my eyes. "What did you just find out?"

_"I found out that in 18 weeks you are going to have a goddaughter."_ Bree squealed into the phone.

I squealed back. "It's a little girl? I'm so happy for you!"

_"I am so excited. I can't wait to get little clothes for my baby girl."_ She sighed. _"I want some Arroz con Pollo. Mmm."_

I laughed. "I'll let you get back to your rice needs. I love you. Give Rob my congratulations."

_"Love you too. Maybe I'll tell him to make Tostadas."_ Bree said.

"Bye preggers." I said before hanging up. I giggled quietly and looked over at Troy. "Bree is having a little girl."

"Is she excited?" Troy asked smiling.

I nodded, "She is excited and hungry."

"Ah, pregnancy. When Mom was pregnant with Liz she always wanted Nutella…on EVERYTHING. I made her Nutella Pizza once." He made a face then shuddered. "Gross."

I giggled quietly. "You're a good son and brother and lover." I leaned over and put my head on his shoulder. "You're a good person."

"Thank you sweetheart." He kissed the top of my head and pulled into his complex. He parked his truck and hopped out. I got out as well and walked over to him. He kissed my lips gently. "I love you."

"Love you too." I smiled and kissed him back. We walked up to his apartment and he opened the door. I walked into the living room and collapsed on the couch. "I'm tired." I said closing my eyes.

"Take a nap and I will go take a shower." He said walking over to me. "You might be more comfortable on the bed." He picked me up and carried me over to his bed.

He placed me on the bed and I curled up against his pillow. "Thank you baby."

"Anytime baby." He kissed my forehead. He walked into the bathroom and left the door open. I watched him undress from the bed. When he looked over at me I closed my eyes and pretended like I was sleeping. He chuckled. "I already saw you Gabriella Montez."

I bit my lip, trying not to smile. I didn't move. I opened my eyes and he was standing in front of me, naked. "Whoa, hello." I rolled over to my other side and burst out in giggles.

"Are you laughing at me?" He asked , rolling me back over. I shook my head. "You better not, or else you're going to get it." He turned around and I smacked his butt.

"Your butt is still so white. I should get you some spray tanner for that ass." He chuckled and walked into the bathroom, closing the door. "Hey" I whined.

He opened the door. "What?"

I giggled quietly. "I want to see the show." I said winking.

He rolled his eyes and turned on the shower. He stepped in and closed the door behind him. I got under the blankets and curled up in it. I closed my eyes and laid there taking a quick nap. I heard Troy shuffling around in his drawers. He plopped down on top of me and I grunted. "Am I too heavy for you?" He asked before rolling off of me.

I opened my eyes and looked at him. "Yep, you almost crushed my bones."

"I want you to crush my bones." He said wagging his eyebrows.

I rolled my eyes. "Somebody is horny today." I lifted the covers and he got in. He wrapped his arms around my waist. I took off my dress and I pressed my semi-bare body against his. "Much better."

"And I'm the horny one." Troy chuckled as he pulled me closer to him.

"I just like skin to skin. It's much more intimate." I kissed his chest and cuddled up against him. "I missed cuddling with you." I put my hand on his cheek and kissed his lips gently.

"I missed cuddling too." He pressed his lips against mine slowly. He kissed my nose then my forehead.

I traced his abs with my fingertips. I drew shapes with my fingertips on his abs. "Even though you own the house, I think we should still go camping." I kissed up his neck slowly. "We had a couple good nights in the tent."

"I have a new one, we could break it in." He said with a chuckle.

"We just might have to." I kissed his lips and snuggled against him. He pulled me closer to him.

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	37. Family

**Troy's POV**

I woke up at five like I normally do. My arms were wrapped around a tiny body and my face was embedded in a mass of dark curls. This is how I should wake up every morning. I lifted her hair up and kissed the back of her neck gently.

"You better let me go back to sleep or else I will kick you so hard in the balls you are never having children." Gabi grumbled tiredly.

I let go of her and chuckled. I kissed her forehead and tucked her in. "Go back to sleep baby." She mumbled something before falling back asleep. I got up quietly without disturbing her and I took a shower. I got dressed for work. I took a piece of paper and started writing. _"Sweetheart, I have to work today. I'm working a half shift then I have a meeting. I'm going to work on the house. later I'll get there at 12:30. Meet me there and we can get lunch or something. I'm giving you the keys to my car. It's the black one parked next to the truck. Feel free to go wherever you want. Call me when you wake up. I love you. -Troy."_ I read out loud as I wrote. I put it on the table with the car keys next to the bed and left for work.

I got into work and I clocked in. I saw my dad walking over to me. "Hey Son." He said patting my back.

"Hey dad." I smiled at him as I walked into my office.

"I heard Gabi was here and you guys are coming over for dinner?" Dad asked, sitting in front of me.

"Yep. We're coming over later, I'm not sure when. Can you head down to Albuquerque Rocks and make sure all the orders are in place? I left Greg to do it but he's incompetent some times." I ran my fingers through my hair. "I have to finish the Mayor's sketch and head over there and give it to them. Then I'm supposed to head over to the Gomez site and check up with them. We should be done soon."

"I think you should put Greg back to his secretary position and I'll run Albuquerque Rocks. I've been there for 9 years and I know that place like the back of my hand." Dad said, looking at me. "I checked up last week and we were losing the Benson deal."

I sighed. "Please tell me you saved it?" I said, scratching the back of my head.

"Of course I did." Dad said with a chuckle. "I should get going now."

"Dad go and stay. Make sure everything is dealt with property. When in doubt, what would Rocks do?" I said with a chuckle. He shook his head and walked out of the door. I called Jenifer. "Hey Jen."

"Hey Troy, what's up?" She answered. She was in the room in front of mine but I didn't feel like getting up.

"Mayor's Sketch. What time am I supposed to be there?" I asked, looking down at the sketch in a plastic cover. The Mayor wanted to build a new gym for West High over the summer.

"You have to be there at 8 sharp. He is very persistent and punctuality will be a bonus." Jen said with a sigh. "Are you dressed nicely?"

"Yes I'm dressed nicely Jenifer." I said, narrowing my eyes at nobody. "I have work to do. Bye." I hung up and started working. I looked at the time and grabbed my book and ran out of the building. I drove over to city hall and got there just in time.

After a long meeting with the mayor he decided he was going to use us for his namesake gym. I was beyond happy. I looked at the time and drove to the Gomez site then back to headquarters. I clocked out and maybe a quick round at Albuquerque Rocks. Dad assured me everything was fine.

I drove down to the house. I went down into the basement and grabbed a can of paint. The room next to the orange room was going to be a light purple color. My mom and Jen helped out with the colors. Orange reminded me of Gabriella. Purple for Emma. A light pink color for Elizabeth. My room was going to be a deep red, like the color of wine. The down stairs room was Ocean Blue as my mom called it. I checked the color before taking it up to the room. I went down to the truck for some painting tape and a change of clothes.

I took off my suit and changed into some shorts and a plain shirt. I put the suit in my room so it doesn't get ruined. I walked back to up to the room. I put a plastic sheet down to protect the floor. I started taping up the walls where necessary. My mind drifted off to Gabi as I did usually. She woke up around 9 and texted me. She was going out and about. I opened the can of paint and poured it on the tray. I dipped the roller in and started to paint.

I finished two walls and I heard the door shut downstairs, or I least I thought I did. "Gabi?" I called out. I heard nothing. I shook it off and went back to work. I finished another wall and took a break. I walked down the stairs and Gabi was sitting on the floor with food all around her. She looked at me and smiled.

"I was wondering when you were going to take a break." She got up slowly. I walked over to her and she wrapped her arms around me. She leaned up and kissed my lips slowly. "Are you hungry?"

"I'm very hungry. I didn't eat anything all day." She giggled and lead me over the little picnic she set up in the living room. "When did you get here?" I asked her looking at her. We sat down and I put a grape in my mouth.

"When you first called my name." Gabi said giggling. "Here, I got pizza." She opened the box.

I reached over and grabbed a slice of pizza. "You are the best. Did you know that?"

She nodded. "I am pretty great aren't I?" She giggled. "I have another surprise for you, but you don't get to see it until after we eat." Gabi winked at me before grabbing a slice of pizza for herself.

"I missed you today." I said before stuffing pizza in my mouth. "I loved waking up to you this morning." I said with my mouth full.

She shook her head at me with a smile. "All I heard was om nom nom nom nom." She giggled and opened a can of Dr. Pepper. She took a drink and smiled at me.

"I said, I loved waking up to you this morning." I put my hand on her bare knee. "Even though you threatened me and our reproductive future" I said, smirking at her. I took another bite and winked at her.

She glared at me and finished her pizza. She grabbed the bowl of grapes and popped some in her mouth. "How many grapes can you fit in your mouth?" She asked with her mouth full, but I understood perfectly.

I chuckled. "I don't know. How many grapes can you fit in your mouth?" I asked raising my eyebrow.

"Let's find out." She said as she swallowed the food in her mouth. "One." she held up a grape and put it in her mouth. "Two, three, four." She popped them in one by one. I was just watching her, amused. I chuckled as she fit two more in her mouth. "Don't laugh at me." She mumbled. She fit 3 more in. After that I lost count until she started choking.

I rushed over to her and patted her back firmly. "Are you alright?" She spit out each grape one by one into her hands.

"Fifteen!" She celebrated and put the grapes on a paper towel.

I looked down and counted them. "That's fourteen babe." I said correcting her.

She shook her head. "I think I swallowed one." She said clearing her throat.

I chuckled. "You are still so weird." She glared at me. "But I love it." I leaned in and kissed her forehead gently. "I love you." I puckered my lips. She leaned over and kissed my lips.

"Love you too." She said as she got up and sat in my lap. "Do you like your surprise?"

I nodded. "I do, I love it. You just keep surprising me, don't you?" She nodded. "I thought you said you had another surprise?"

She popped up. "Oh I do, but hold on." She got her purse and walked into the down stairs bathroom. I picked up a strawberry and ate it. I put the stem on the napkin with Gabi's mouth grapes. Gabi emerged from the bathroom and walked over to me. "I got this for you." Gabi said, looking at me. I watched her pull her dress up. I looked down at her crotch. "Not down there you pervert." She pointed to her hip.

I looked at her him. I got up on my knee to get a closer look. Right next to her hip bone there was a heart with a T in the middle. Gabi got a tattoo. I blinked up at her. "When'd you get this?"

"Earlier today. I went and to the parlor you went to. I was talking to Tommy, one if his employees and he called Jake McFarlane and he came down. He remembered me after all these years, do you believe that?" She asked me smiling. "So I got a tattoo, I love it." She dropped her dress.

"You weren't wearing a dress were you?" I asked, smirking at her.

She rolled her eyes. "No babe. I was wearing shorts. I changed into a dress so I can flash you." She lifted up her dress. "Woooo!" She yelled. I chuckled, pulling her against me and she sat down on my lap. I kissed her lips gently.

We sat there quietly looking at the empty house. "I am almost finished with the lavender room, then I need to finish the pink one. Then I'm on to mine."

"What color is yours going to be?" She asked me, looking over at me. She wrapped her arms around my neck, holding onto me.

"Deep red, like wine." I said, picking up a strawberry and eating it. I winked at her.

She opened her mouth and I fed her a strawberry. "Deep red, how sexy." She wiggled her eyebrows.

I chuckled. "That's what I was aiming for."

After we were finished eating we packed up our little picnic. I walked upstairs and finished painting the purple room. Gabi was watching me paint. "So we're going to your house?" She asked me.

"Yes we are, for dinner." I said, looking around the room. I did some touch ups and started putting the paint away.

"We should have a paint fight, we could make a whole bunch of different colors." She said with a giggle. I looked back at her and she bit her lip.

"One day, sweetheart." I closed up the paint and took it down stairs. I climbed back up the stairs and Gabi was standing by the window. I put my arms on either side of her and opened the window. I kissed the back of her head. "You know, I'm going to have to repaint these when we have kids. My son is not going to have a lavender room."

She giggled and turned around. "What if he's gay?" She asked, tilting her head.

"Well, when he is born we have to paint it boy colors, like green or blue and if he's in high school or something and comes out of the closet I will gladly paint his room pink or yellow or any other color he wanted it to be." I kissed her forehead.

She smiled at me and squeezed my cheeks. "You are so handsome."

"I know." I said winking at her. "I can't wait till it's finished." I wrapped my arms around her and leaned my forehead against hers. "When you finish school and if you want to come back to New Mexico. My door will always be open for you."

She nodded silently. "I know, Thank you. I still have to decide what I want to do. I think after school I'm going to go down to LA for a little while, help out with Bree and the baby." She looked up at me and smiled. "When you finish it, I'll come by and If I like it, I'll stay" She joked.

I smiled. "Well I really hope you like it." I kissed the top of her head and pulled away. "You ready? I have to go and shower, I have dry paint on me."

"Let's go then." She clasped her hand around mine and we walked down stairs. I waited for her by the door as she got her purse. She grabbed the keys and walked over to me. "I love this house." She said smiling at me. "Good choice."

"Thank you sweetheart." I closed the door behind me and I locked up the house. I walked her to the car and opened the door for her. "I'll see you back at the apartment." I leaned down and kissed her lips.

"Alright, I'll race you." She said smiling at me. I chuckled and shook my head, closing the car door. I walked over to the truck and I got in.

Gabi tried to race me home but I let her win. I didn't feel like getting pulled over for doing something stupid. I parked in my parking spot and I turned off the truck. I jumped out and Gabi was already in the apartment. I walked in the door and Gabi was no where to be found. "Gabi?" I sang. "Are you hiding from me?"

I heard a giggle coming from around the house. I closed the door behind me. I heard the shower turn on. I shook my head and smiled. I walked into the bedroom and I opened the bathroom door. She was sitting in the small empty bathtub naked, waiting for the water to fill it up. She smiled up at me. "You found me."

I chuckled. "How the hell are we both supposed to fit in there?" I asked, taking my shirt off.

She shrugged. "I don't know. We can make it work, I might have to sit on you though." She stood up and smiled. "Wait, I'm not supposed to get my tattoo wet." She pouted and grabbed a towel and patted her tattoo.

"Well we are going to have to be really careful then." I said. I pulled down my pants and my boxers and I sat down in the bathtub. She sat at the edge of the bathtub and massaged my shoulders. I closed my eyes. "Mmm, that feels good." I opened my eyes and looked up at her. She leaned down to kiss my lips. "Your boobs on my forehead." I said chuckling.

She sat up. "Well if you're complaining…."

I looked at her and shook my head. "I'm not complaining, trust me." She rolled her eyes and leaned down to kiss my lips again. I licked my lips after she pulled away. I turned around and stood on my knees in front of her. I wrapped my arms around her waist and kissed her lips firmly. "Your kisses are still intoxicating."

Gabi smiled against my lips and pulled away. She rubbed my cheeks. "Did you shave this morning?" She asked me, curiously.

I nodded. "I had a meeting with the Mayor, we are building a gym for his namesake, for West High."

She giggled. "Well look at you, all professional." She bit her bottom lip. "You should come home all sweaty with a just a reflector vest on, a hard hat and a tool belt."

"Can I wear pants?" I asked, joking.

She nodded. "I have to take something off of you right?" She said giggling. She licked my bottom lip. "Can't wait."

I chuckled at her. "You are something else."

She smiled brightly. "I know."

After our bath, we hopped into a quick shower. We got ready for dinner with my parents. I pulled my shoes on and Gabi came out in another dress. I turned to look at her. Her perfect curls were resting on her back. She was putting earrings in while putting on some heels. She was perfect in every single way.

"Why are you staring at me like that? You already know what I look like naked." Gabi said.

My head shot up from her long tan legs to her face. I smiled at her. "I'm just admiring your beauty sweetheart."

"Are we ready?" She asked slipping on her second heel before walking back into the bathroom.

"I'm ready. Are you ready?" I asked, brushing off my jeans. Gabi came out and nodded. I walked over to her kissing her freshly glossed lips. "Mmm…" I licked my lips. "Pineapple? Is this new?" I asked her.

"It's Pina Colada, but it tastes like pineapples." She said pulling out her tube of lip gloss. "I bought it earlier today, I did a little shopping. I had to have some things here right?" She said with a small smirk. She looked at the tube of gloss. "Ohh! It was made in Hawaii." She popped her lips and walked out of the room.

I chuckled as I stuffed my wallet in my pocket. I walked out of the bedroom and over to the counter. I picked up my car keys and headed toward the door. Gabi followed me over to the door, putting her fingers in my back pocket. "Ready to go beautiful?" She nodded quietly in response.

We walked out the door and I locked it. "Hey Troy!" I turned to my left and saw my neighbor Ashley. She was a college student at U of A, fresh out of high school. Her parents paid her and her roommate Rachel's rent. She was standing outside of her door. "I forgot my key and I think Rachel is in the shower." She said with a sigh.

"You're always loosing your key Ashley. You should invest in a lanyard." I said, giving her a polite smile. She let out a laugh. I saw a small smirk on Gabi's face out of the corner of my eye. "Ashley, this is my girlfriend Gabi, Babe, this is my neighbor Ashley. She has a roommate, Rachel." I turned to look at Gabs.

"It's nice to meet you." Ashley said. "I've never seen Troy with a girl, except for Jen? I think that was her name. The blonde. I was starting to think he was gay or something."

Gabi smiled, politely. "It's nice to meet you as well. And Troy is definitely not gay." Gabi looked up at me with a devilish grin. "We should be heading out, but it was nice to meet you Ashley."

"Bye Ashley." I said, wrapping my arms around Gabi.

"Bye!" Ashley called after us.

We walked down the stairs and Gabi took the keys out of my hand. "Can I drive?" She asked looking up at me. I shook my head and took them out of her hand. I unlocked the car and opened the door for her. She thanked me with a kiss before getting in the car. I closed the door behind her and got in. "So I'm your girlfriend?" Gabi asked as I buckled my seatbelt.

I chuckled. "Ashley and Rachel tend to hit on me every chance they get." I explained to her. "They're 18."

"Oh." Gabi said nodding. "That explains a lot."

Gabi sang along to the radio quietly as I drove to my parents house. I ran my fingertips along her smooth legs. "You look beautiful." I murmured. She put her hand on mine, squeezing it. "I love you." We pulled up to the house.

She jumped out of the car and ran all the way to the door. She pressed the doorbell. Liz opened the door as I was walking up. "Gabi! Troy!" She ran over to me and I picked her up. "I missed you."

"I missed you too Lizzy." I said, kissing her cheek. I set her down and she grabbed Gabi's hand and ran inside. Gabi was running after her to keep up. I closed the door behind us. "Hey Pops." I said, sitting next to him on the couch.

"Hey son." He glanced at me then back at the T.V. "Did you see the Bulls game yesterday?"

I shook my head. "No, Gabi's keeping me busy. Less work more Gabi time." I said with a chuckle.

My dad smiled. "She was always good at that."

"Who was good at what?" Mom said coming in. She leaned down to kiss my cheek. "Hey baby."

"Hey Mom, where's Gabi?" I asked, getting up from the couch.

"Liz kidnapped her, they're playing." Mom explained. "In her room."

I nodded and started walking up the stairs. I opened the door to Liz's room. "Hey Get out! Girls Only!" Liz shrieked as she saw me.

"I'm your big brother, I'm immune to your rules Elizabeth." I said walking in the room. I sat down on the bed. "What are you guys talking about?" I looked from Liz to Gabi. They were sitting on the floor.

"None of your business Troy Maxwell." Gabi said looking over at me then looking back at Liz. "But I'll be right back Liz, Troy is going to show me his old room."

"Okay," Liz said turning back to her toys.

Gabi pulled me up and we walked across the hall. I opened the door and Gabi walked in. She laid down on the bed and sighed. "Ah, I missed this bed."

I climbed in the bed next to her and wrapped my arms around her. "I missed having you in my bed." Gabi turned around to face me. I leaned down and kissed her lips firmly. "So many good times in this bed." She nodded and kissed my lips firmly. Her fingers moved up my shirt slowly.

Gabi pulled away from me. "I wish I could take you everywhere with me." She rested her head against my chest. I placed a kiss on the top of her head.

"Elizabeth! Troy! Gabriella! Dinner!" Mom yelled from down stairs. Gabi got up slowly and smoothed down her dress.

I got up after her and held her hand as we walked out of my old room. We walked down stairs and sat down at the table. Mom and Dad were just as happy as I was to have Gabi back. Liz fell in love with Gabi just as I knew she would.

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	38. Little Present

**Hey Guys! Two more chapters left! I'm not sure what i'll be putting out next so just bare with me. Love you guys! :)**

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**Troy's POV**

"Done!" I yelled throughout the empty house as dropped the paintbrush. I finished painting the last bathroom. Gabi was leaving tomorrow night she helped out with the painting, making it easier for me. She was out with Elizabeth, she was taking her to Santa Fe to get a Build-A-Bear. I cleaned up the bathroom taking the paint cans and everything down to the basement of the house.

It was hot, as it was year round in the desert. I walked through my house, very happy with the renovations I had finished. I needed to fix the docks out to the lake. I was thinking about expanding the patio to the dock but I was still debating on it.

"TROY!" I heard from down stairs.

"Troy!" Another voice yelled from down stairs. I chuckled to myself and walked back down the stairs. Gabi was holding Liz's hand as she looked around. "Hey babe." Gabi said noticing my presence.

"There are my favorite people." I walked over to them. Liz looked over at me and clung to my leg until I picked her up. I kissed Gabi's forehead. "Where's your bear Lizzy?"

"She's sleeping in her house." Liz said, getting down. "Gabi made one too. Didn't you Gabi?" She looked up at her.

Gabi nodded. "Guilty. I named mine Troy." She winked at me.

I chuckled. "I hope you aren't replacing me."

"I could never." She wrapped her arms around me. "How's painting?"

I smiled down at her. "I'm finally done!"

"That's great Troy" She smiled up at me. "What is your next project?"

"The docks and the deck." I said, pulling away from her. "Then paving the driveway, maybe building a garage… or overhang."

"Very ambitious." Gabi said, smirking at me. "I know you can do it honey."

"Can I see the house?" Liz asked as she was already walking up the stairs.

I chuckled and followed her. "Sure." I led Liz and Gabi through the house, showing them the rooms and their colors. "This one is my room." I said opening the final door.

"ooh." Liz said looking around the room. "I like red."

"Me too." Gabi agreed as we stood in the door way. I heard Gabi's stomach growl and I looked over at her. "Apparently I'm hungry."

Liz giggled from next to us. "Could we go to that place Troy used to work at? They always give us some free cake."

Gabi looked over at me. "Do you want to come?"

"Yeah, I'll change my shirt in the truck." We opened all the doors and walked down the stairs. We locked the front door and I changed my shirt and hopped in the car with Liz and Gabi. "I was about to get lunch too."

"Good thing." Gabi said as I put my hand on her knee. I sat back as she drove to Murray's, the old restaurant I worked at. Gabi parked and I hopped out.

Liz got out of the car and walked over to me. "Troy."

"What's up Munchkin?" I said, messing up her hair.

She smacked my arm away. "Stop that. And don't call me munchkin." She looked up at me with a serious face. I looked at her with an equally serious face until she broke out in a small smile. "I want to ask you a question."

"What's that?" I asked, looking down at her then glancing back at Gabi who was digging through the trunk for her purse.

"Gabi is princess Gabi isn't she?" Liz questioned looking up at me. I nodded. "I knew it!"

"How'd you figure that out?" I asked, looking at my little sister.

She shrugged. "I just knew. When we picked her up from the airport. Remember that dream I had where you married Princess Gabi?" I looked at her astonished. "That's exactly what she looked like. I saw her picture in your room and then it all made sense."

"How do you remember that? You were like four." I said, looking at the little girl.

"I've had it more than once." Liz said shrugging. "I had a dream about Emma too. How old would she be?"

"Twenty-two." I watched Gabi shut the trunk and walked over to us. "What did she look like?"

"She was pretty, like Mommy. She has Mommy's hair and Yours and Daddy's eyes." Liz said looking up at me. "She said she loves us."

We started walking again and I wrapped my arms around Gabi. She was looking at me confused and Liz walked into the restaurant before us. "What is she talking about?" Gabi asked.

"Her dreams. I'll tell you later." I said, holding the door open for her.

"Troy Fucking Bolton." I heard from in front of me and my head shot up. A smile broke out on my face.

"Damn, you're still here?" I asked the woman in front of me. "It's been years Julie." I walked over to her and hugged her tightly.

"I am a manager now." She said pointing to her nametag. "What are you doing here basketball star?"

I chuckled. "I blew my knee out two years ago. I moved back. Remember Liz?" I asked pointing to Liz who was talking to Gabi.

"Damn! How old is she now?" She said looking at the girls.

"Seven. They grow up so fast." I said smiling at her.

"Is that your wife?" Julie asked nodding towards Gabriella. I shook my head. "She looks so familiar."

"Remember my first day of work?" I said looking at Julie. She stepped out from the counter than she raised her eyebrows. "She was my girlfriend at the time, with the mom who hated me with the table for 20."

"No Shit!" Julie said. "Damn!" She was quiet. "I thought she left."

"She did, I hadn't talk to her in almost 8 years. I ran into her in San Francisco, We're kind of together again… kind of." I vaguely explained. "Can I get a table for three Julie?"

She laughed. "Yes of course. Follow me"

"Gabi, Liz." I called them over and We got seated into a booth. "Thanks Julie."

Julie walked away, smiling. I wrapped my arm around Gabi, who was sitting next to me. "Lizzy, what are you going to get?" Gabs asked.

"I don't know. What are you going to get?" Liz countered, setting down her menu.

"Alfredo with Angel hair pasta." Gabi said, looking at the drinks.

"I think I'll get that too." Liz said, smiling up at Gabi. "Do you really have to go tomorrow?" Liz asked with a pout.

Gabi nodded. "I do, but I will be back. I promise."

"Pinky Promise?" Liz said looking up at Gabi. She held out her small pinky.

"Pinky Promise." Gabi wrapped her finger around Liz's. "What are we doing tomorrow Troy?" She asked me.

"We could go down to the lake?" I suggested. "Go swimming."

"CAN WE GO CAMPING TONIGHT?" Liz asked, excitedly.

"I don't know kid, you'll have to ask mom." I said shifting in my seat.

A guy came up to us and took our orders. We sat and talked for a little bit while our food came out. We ate then had a short visit with Mr. Norman who was still around, but mostly in the background. We got in the car and took Elizabeth back home. I went back to my apartment and got changed. Gabi was laying on bed, her eyes were closed.

I walked over to her and rubbed her back slowly. She turned over and whined quietly. I shushed her and laid down next to her. I moved the hair out of her face and kissed her lips gently. She kissed back instead of pulling away as I thought she would. "I keep thinking this is some big dream. I'll wake up back in California with Sam knocking on my door, ready to take me out." Gabi mumbled quietly with her eyes closed.

"This is not a dream sweetheart." I brushed my fingertips along her cheek.

"It happened more than once." She let out a quiet yawn. "When I left the first time and had my little incident, i remember i was in the hospital and i was starting to wake up. I woke up and you were there, telling me everything was alright. Then you turned into my dad. Then I woke up." She licked her lips. "I cried myself to sleep for months because I knew you had no idea what happened. You had no way of possibly getting there."

I let out a soft breath. I planted a kiss on her forehead gently. "I wish I could have been there. I would have been right by your side when you woke up." My arms locked around her, I left kissed down the side of her face slowly. "I would have been by your side every morning you woke up if I could." I whispered before planting a kiss on her chin.

"I love you." Gabi said quietly. I kissed her lips slowly. "I'm just glad you're here now." She flicked her eyes open and looked up at me. "I don't want to go back. But I know I have to." She admitted.

I silently ran my fingers through her curls. "Hey, you only have a couple more months of college. You'll spend some time with Bree and the baby and then one day you'll make your way back to me. I'm counting on it." I looked down at her and smiled. "I love you too Sweetheart."

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**8 months later.**

"She is beautiful, Bree." I said, cradling the 3 month old little girl in my arms. "What's her name again?" I looked up at Bree who was smiling at me and the baby. Gabi was sitting next to me on the couch running her finger against the baby's head gently.

"Macy Jane" Gabi said, kissing the child's forehead. "She is beautiful just like her mama."

"Hardly. She's all Rob." Bree said. Macy's small hand wrapped around my finger. "She's such a good baby. My nephew James is like a total brat. He takes after my sister though. I never really imagined her with kids."

I chuckled. "I can't wait to have kids someday." I admitted quietly. I looked over to see Gabi staring at me. I got up and handed Bree the little girl. "I better get her back to you before I keep her."

"You know you're welcome anytime." Bree said smiling.

"If your ever in Albuquerque I have 4 more bedrooms that need people." I said chuckling. I sat back down next to Gabi. I put my hand on her knee. "Thank you for letting me hold her."

"You don't get out much when you're a mom so I like the company. Rob is in Houston for a competition." She sighed. "Gabi has been a god send."

Gabi rolled her eyes from next to me. I kissed her cheek gently. "That's Gabi for you." We left Bree's and went out to the beach. Even though it was October being at the beach was always special. She sat in between my legs as I held her. We looked out at the water. "How does it feel to be a College graduate? Doctor Gabi" I asked her, rubbing her arms.

"It still feels were that every body calls me that." She giggled quietly. "I'm happy to be out but LA just doesn't have it's appeal anymore. Dad officially moved up to San Francisco. He's opening up his new store in Chicago. He has 5 now." She rested the back of her head against my chest. "Something's missing out here." She said quietly.

I left a trail of kisses down the back of her neck. "What's that baby?"

"I miss you. I'm loving working for the hospital but I don't want to be with out you any more. I don't want to wait months to see you. You flew out for graduation now you're here again. I want to see you everyday." She got up and turned to face me. "Would you like that? If I moved back to Albuquerque."

I studied her face. She was as beautiful as ever. I leaned down to kiss her lips. "I would only be happy if you moved back to Albuquerque and lived with me."

She let out a small giggle. "I don't know, I don't think you have enough room." She looked at me and then frowned. "I haven't even gotten to see the house yet."

"I know. It's all finished. The deck its awesome. I rebuilt the docks. I even paved a driveway and the road." I said listing off the thing I had done. "The house is furnished, I got a new bed." I let out a sigh. "It is so comfortable."

She smacked my chest. "Knock it off. I already can't wait to see it." She put her legs on either side off me. I pulled her close and kissed her lips gently. "I definitely want to go back soon."

"Whenever baby, We can load up a truck and go." I offered.

"That will take like 2 days!" She whined. "That's forever."

I chuckled. "We can't take everything on the plane Gabriella." She rolled her eyes at me. "I love you sweetheart."

"Love you too Bolton." She said. I kissed her forehead and smiled. She finally cracked and smiled back at me.

By the end of my trip we had packed all of Gabi's stuff and put it in a truck. We were having somebody drive it over to Albuquerque while Gabi and I flew back. We landed at about Noon and we got back to the house at one. I was excited to show Gabi the house. We drove down the paved road.

"This is so nice Troy!" Gabi said, straining to look out the window. "Like ser-" She gasped, looking at the front of the house. "It looks so different!" I pressed the button and the garage door opened. "You built a garage?" She unbuckled her seatbelt as I pulled the truck in. "It looks completely different."

I chuckled. "All in a day's work sweetheart." I winked at her as I got out of the car. She walked over to me and hugged me tightly. "Do you like it baby?" She nodded. "Good, let's go see the inside."

We walked inside and I showed her the down stairs bedroom. We walked around the kitchen to the living rooms. I showed her the renovated basement that I turned into a game room. We made our way up stairs. I showed her the orange room first. "I was kind of inspired by you for this room…" I said before closing the door.

"Well it's amazing." She murmured as she opened the next room. "Let me guess Elizabeth." I chuckled and nodded. The pink room was the one Liz usually stayed in when and if she stayed over or they came over. There was things all over the floor. "She's silly." She closed the door.

"She is, She misses you." I said showing her the bathroom then opening the lavender bedroom.

"Oh, this is pretty." She said as she walked in the room. She looked out the window over the lake. "This room has the best view." She said with a small sigh.

I nodded and wrapped my arms around her and kissed the back of her neck. "I'm so happy you're here."

She turned and smiled at me. "Me too." She leaned her butt against the window sill. She wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling me closer to her. "I'm going to be so much more happy here with you." She said before pressing her lips to mine.

I wrapped my arms around her waist and kissed her lips firmly. I parted my lips and she slipped her tongue in my mouth. My fingers traveled up her shirt slowly. I brushed my tongue against hers slowly, I felt the Goosebumps rise on her arms. I smiled into the kiss and I pulled away slowly. "We still have one more room to go."

"Let's go then." She said, pushing me off her. She licked her lips and walked towards my room. I stepped in front of her as she approached the door. "Get out of the way Bolton."

"You have to wait out here for like two minutes, I have to tidy up and I'll call you in okay?" I asked and walked in the room. I closed the door and locked it. She tried to open it and she pounded on it. She let out a loud sigh. I chuckled as I picked up my- well now our- room. I walked into the closet and pulled out a little present for Gabi. I took a deep breath. Little present was an understatement. I unlocked the door silently and stood in front of my bed. "Come in." oh god. I shoved her present back in my pocket as she opened the door.

Gabi came in and I sat on the bed. I let out the breath that I was holding. Not the right time. I watched as Gabi walked around looking at everything. "It's amazing Troy!" She said with a smile on her face. "Good thing you tidied up."

I chuckled and got up. "I'm going to get changed." I walked into my closet and hid the present under a pile of clothes. Not yet but soon, I thought to myself. I changed into some shorts and walked out. Gabi was laying on the bed in her underwear waiting for me. "Oh man, a welcome home present."

Gabi giggled and rolled on her back. "Mmm, you're right. This is comfortable." I pulled off the shirt that I literally just put on and climbed on the bed. I left a tail of kisses up her arm to her neck slowly. I found the sensitive spot just above her collarbone. She let out a quiet moan as I started sucking firmly. My fingertips drifted down her bare stomach into her panties. She sucked in a breath as I dipped a finger into her core.

I detached my lips from her neck, kissing the faint red mark on her neck. She kissed my lips firmly, grabbing my butt. I chuckled quietly and licked her bottom lip as my finger moved in and out of her slowly. "I missed you so much."

She giggled. "I couldn't tell." She said sarcastically. She tugged down my shorts and my boxers. I pulled down her panties slowly, kissing her belly gently. I unhooked her bra and cupped her breasts. I placed an open mouth kiss on each, flicking her nipple with my tongue. "Mmm." I pushed my lips back against her and climbed on top of her.

A little while later we found ourselves outside, fully clothed by the way. "We should go on the boat…" I said thinking of something. "I'll be right back." I ran up the stairs and got her present and stuffed it into my pocket. I ran back outside and saw Gabi sitting in the boat waiting for me. "Sorry, had to pee."

She giggled. "It's fine. You're rowing. You tired me out." She gave me a devilish smirk and I wore a proud smile. She let out a yawn as I rowed out into the middle of the lake. I set the ores in their holders and stood up. I turned my back to her and took the ring out of the box quickly. I shoved the box into my pocket. "What's that?"

"What's what?" I said turning back around.

She looked at me confused. "Nothing, never mind. I must be delirious right now." She giggled and looked up at the clear blue sky. I sat back down and glanced at her. She was still looking at the sky. I held the ring in the palm of my hand. "It's such a beautiful day."

I smiled at her. "Yeah it is." She looked at me to see I wasn't even looking at the sky. She shook her head at me. "You're beautiful baby." She fought the small smile on her face. "How many kids do you want?" I asked randomly.

She pursed her lips in thought. "Maybe two or three. What about you?"

"A couple." I stated looking at her. "Are you going to get a job at the hospital?" I asked, looking at her.

"You're full of questions today." She giggled. If only she knew. "Probably. I think I'm going to talk to your mom, so if they're any openings in my field."

I smiled at her, watching her. "I bet you're great at what you do." She laughed and looked away. "What? You're still good at everything. That hasn't changed. Do you think our baby will look like me?" I asked.

She shook her head. "Nope. It's going to be all me."

I chuckled. "Good, good. It will be beautiful if it looks like you." I gave her a cheesy smile. I licked my lips slowly and looked at her. "I have one more question for you."

"What's that?" Gabi asked looking out on the lake.

I got down on one knee and held out the ring. "Sweetheart," She turned to look at me, her eyes growing. "Will you marry me?"

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	39. Making Plans

**Gabriella's POV**

I blinked at him a couple of times. Troy was kneeling in the middle of the boat holding a fucking ring, asking me to marry him. "What?" I asked, without even thinking. I wasn't even sure I heard him right.

"I love you and I spent eight years without you. I am never letting you go again. Will you marry me?" Troy asked again. He smiled brightly again before it started fading. I was frozen.

Yes. "Yeah. I'll marry you." I said, looking at him. "You still want to marry me right?" I asked nervously.

His face lit up at my answer. He chuckled. "Of course I still want to marry you." He slid the ring on my finger. Troy went to get up, using my hand to help. I lifted my hand up to look at the ring more closely and his knee collapsed. He fell over falling in the lake.

I covered my mouth then burst out laughing. He came up and looked up at me. I continued laughing as he climbed back on the boat. He glared at me and sat down. "Somebody threw off the equilibrium." I sang quietly. He glared at me and I sat on his lap. I kissed his lips firmly, running my fingers through his hair. "I love you, fiancé."

He smiled up at me. "I love you too future Mrs. Bolton."

I leaned my head against his wet shoulder. "We should get you changed." He nodded and kissed my forehead. "Or you could take your clothes off and we don't have to put new clothes on." I said suggestively. I got up and he chuckled.

"Damn baby. I didn't know I got you that wet." Troy said, chuckling at me.

I turned around to look at my butt. Sitting on his wet lap made it look like I peed my pants. I rolled my eyes at him. "Dick." I muttered, sitting back down.

"You like it." Troy said smirking at me. I rolled my eyes as he started rowing back to the house. Once we got to the dock Troy tied up the boat. I stood him up and pushed him off the boat again. He splashed in the water and I ran towards the house. I needed somewhere to hide. I ran down to the game room and I hid behind the couch that was in there. "Gabi! I'm going to kick your ass!" I heard Troy yell from upstairs.

I giggled to myself quietly. I stayed quiet. I could hear him walking around up stairs. "This might take a while." I said to myself. I turned the TV on low and laid on the couch watching some housewife show. "The real housewives of Albuquerque." I said to myself with a little giggle. "That would be something."

"Yeah, it would be something." I heard from behind me. I froze nervously and sat up, standing up really quickly. He was luckily still at the door. He walked down the steps and stopped at the bottom of the stairs. I looked around at somewhere else to hide. "Can't go anywhere babe."

I gulped and watched him as he walked slowly over to me. "Baby, I'm sorry for pushing you into the lake." I said quietly, with a small smile on my face. "Do you forgive me?" I walked backwards away from him slowly. "I love you."

"I love you too, but you're going to get it." He said, walking over to me. "We could do this the easy way or we could do it the hard way. It's your choice." Troy had a smirk on his face. I looked at him up and down. He changed his clothes, he wore my favorite shirt of his. He looked incredibly sexy.

I snapped out of it. "Or we could not do it at all." I offered it with a sly smile. He shook his head and stopped walking. I stopped as well. I let out a breath of relief. Before I knew it he ran over to me and wrapped his arms around me, tackling me to the ground. His fingers moved to my sides tickling me like crazy. I burst out laughing before trying to grab his hands. "Troy!" I whined.

Troy chuckled as he continued to tickle me. I screamed and kept trying to fight him off me. I managed to grab his hands but he pinned me down. He leaned down to kiss my lips but pulled away instead. "I love you Gabi." He kissed my lips gently and his face softened. "I think were even now."

"I'm sorry baby." I rubbed my bare calf against his slowly. He released my arms and I ran my fingers through his damp hair. "You'd still look sexy with a Mohawk."

He chuckled and kissed my lips firmly. He got up and helped me up. Troy had a slight limp as he walked over to the couch. He sat down and put his leg up. "My knee is bothering me." He admitted, rubbing around his knee cap.

I frowned. "I'm sorry." I sat next to him and kissed the scars on his knee gently. "I wish I was there when you got hurt and when you got your surgery." I laid in between his legs, resting my head on his chest. I let out a soft sigh. "When'd you buy this?" I asked, holding up my hand with the ring on it.

"Mmm, After you left when spring break was over." Troy placed soft kisses on the top of my head. "I forgot about it when I went head first into finishing the house. When I moved in, I saw it in the closet right where I left it for a couple months." His finger tips glided down my back slowly. "I was waiting for the perfect time to ask. I was going to do it in California but I chickened out. I was going to do it earlier today but I chickened out again. I finally grew a pair and realized that there may never be a perfect time. I had to just do it."

I giggled quietly. "I'm glad you did." I lifted my head up and cupped his face. I planted firm kisses on his lips. I laid my head back down. "I don't know what I would do if you didn't love me anymore. If I found you and you were happily married with 5 kids to some girl you met in college. I think that would have hurt worse than when I left the first time."

Troy chuckled from under me. "You are the only person I've ever wanted to be with. I was going to make my own Jake McFarlane story. Even if you were with somebody, I'd beat him up." I gasped quietly, then giggled. "Okay, maybe not. I would have let you be if you were happy." He lifted my hand up and kissed each of my fingers slowly. "You look good with a ring on your finger."

I nodded in agreement. "I look even better with you by my side." I kissed his lips firmly once again.

A couple days later we moved all of my things into our house. We went out for dinner with his family to announce our engagement. I invited Daddy but he couldn't make it. Dad was very happy for us, he was happy that I was finally happy again.

I missed daddy a lot, but he was going to come down here for Christmas in a month or so. Bree couldn't have been happier for me. Her and Rob and Macy were planning a trip to come visit us soon, probably after the New Year.

I got settled into my new job at a hospital in Albuquerque. I was still getting used to the feeling of the ring on my finger. We hadn't really made any plans yet for a wedding. We were going to wait a little bit. I was just enjoying his down time from work and spending time with my new Fiancé.

Since I've been back Liz has been attached at my hip. She was the little sister I never had and she was so excited when we told her we were getting married. You should have seen the look on her face when I told her she was going to be the flower girl. She was so excited.

We called up Taylor and Chad. We hadn't seen them since their summer wedding. They had some news to tell us as well but they were waiting until Christmas to tell us all. I had my suspicions but I wasn't completely sure. Chad was still playing for the Kings. He was at the peak of his career and he and Taylor were very happy.

I was down in the basement looking through some of my old things. I had a lot of stuff. I mostly just unpacked my clothes and little things to add touches around the house. Troy was more than happy to let me invade his space. It was Saturday and I didn't have anything to do. Troy was working but he should be getting off soon. I pushed a box of old pictures out of the way and I found one titled Troy.

I bit my bottom lip. I must have packed this a long time ago. I pulled it over to me and opened the box. I let out a small sigh before I picked up the picture sitting on top. I smiled to myself. It was a picture of Troy and I at the lake. Taylor took it and sent it to me. It was the only picture I had of Troy other than the ones on my old phone. I need to frame this. I searched through the box and felt something at the bottom.

I pulled something white out of the box. I looked at it, wondering what it was before I shook it out and opened it up. A giant smile formed on my face as I looked at a mustard stained white t-shirt.

"Gabi!" I heard Troy yell from upstairs. He must have just gotten home. I pulled the shirt over my head before walking towards the stairs. "Sweetheart?" Troy called again.

"I'm coming Troy." I said, walking out of the open door at the top of the stairs. I saw Troy's head poke into the kitchen and he walked over to me with a grin on his face. "Hello, fiancé." I cupped his dirty face and gave him a kiss.

"Hello beautiful." He chuckled at me as I wiped my hands on his shirt. "Sorry, it's hot as hell outside." He stepped away from me and looked at me. "What ar-… Is that?" He looked at me confused.

I giggled quietly and nodded. "Does this shirt look familiar?"

"I thought I had that shirt. How did you get it?" He asked looking a me.

"I stole it from you a couple of days before I left." I smiled innocently. "I kept it hidden away, but I just found it along with other things of yours that I took."

Troy chuckled at me. "I need to enroll you in kleptos anonymous."

I scoffed and smacked his chest. "I am not a kleptomaniac."

"I'm going to go take a shower." He announced giving me another kiss. "I think I'm going to go swimming, too." He started walking towards the stairs.

"That sounds like a good idea." I said with a giggle, smacking his butt.

Troy took a shower and I got changed into a bikini. I grabbed my laundry basket and walked down stairs to put a load in the washer. I closed the lid to the washer and it began. I met Troy at the bottom of the stairs. I hopped on his back and he took me out to the back deck. I kissed the back of his neck gently before he set me down by my favorite lounge chair.

"Thank you honey." I rewarded him with a kiss. I sat down and watched him jump into the water. I looked up at the blue sky before laying back. I looked back towards the water and Troy was climbing out of the lake.

Troy pulled a chair over and laid it flat. He laid on his stomach and looked at me. "How is work going?"

"Good, I like it." I said, licking my lips before rubbing them together. "How is your work?"

"There is always something new. Albuquerque Rocks is doing really well." Troy let out a sigh. "Did you know that when your mom signed over Albuquerque Rocks, they had an agreement that her or you, if she passed on would always get 3% of whatever profit."

I sat up and looked at him. "What? Seriously?"

He nodded his head. "When Doug sold me the company I called your mom. I told her I wasn't giving her anymore money. If I was going to give anybody money, it would be you."

"I bet my mom had a cow." I said, looking at him.

"Oh, she did." He chuckled. "She threatened to send me to court. So I had a lawyer who happened to find your papa's will. He left the company to you. When I pointed that out to her she decided against and let it go. She didn't want to get you involved. So you have a fat check to cash, my love."

"Do you know how much?" I asked him, raising my eyebrows. I honestly found this hard to believe but I knew Troy wouldn't lie to me.

"I'll have to go through my books but I can let you know." Troy said. I got up and sat in his lap. "You can do whatever you want with it." I nodded quietly. I didn't really want to think about money right now. I laid my head against his shoulder. "Are you going to invite your mom to the wedding?"

I sat up and looked at him. "I'm not sure, I haven't really thought about it."

"I think you should. She is your mom after all." Troy suggested. "Maybe you could tell her about the engagement first, then you can decide about the wedding."

"You think I should invite my mom?" I said with a raised eyebrow.

He chuckled. "She did give birth to you Gabriella."

I rolled my eyes and laid my head back against his chest. "You're strange but I love you."

"I love you more, sweetheart." He kissed the top of my head.

In the next couple of days I had a lot of thinking to do. Was I going to tell Katherine about the engagement? Was I going to invite her to the wedding? Would she even come to the wedding? How would I feel if she did or did not come to the wedding? How much money did I have? What was I going to do with it? I had a lot of decisions to make.

Troy finally wrote out a check with the amount of money I had from Albuquerque Rocks in the past year and a half. He handed it to me nonchalantly as he got home from work and walked up the stairs to go change. I held it in my hand and I opened the check. "Holy shit!" I yelled. I heard Troy chuckle from upstairs. "Half a million dollars? Are you kidding me?" That was a lot of money.

God, I needed to sit down. I made my way over to the couch. I sat down and stared at the check in my hand. I heard Troy's footsteps coming down the stairs and he peered over the couch. "$675,433.09 to be exact." He said with a smile on his face.

"This can't be right." I said looking up at him. I put my hand on my clammy face. "This is way too much."

He shook his head. "I told you, Albuquerque Rocks was doing really well." Troy made his way over to me. "You get a check every 6 months but that was for over a year."

"Jesus Christ." I muttered. "No wonder I didn't hear from my mom for 8 years. She was well taken care of."

"Yeah, she was. I don't know how she conned Doug into giving her a percentage." Troy let out a yawn and laid on top of me and I grunted. "I don't weigh that much."

I giggled quietly and kissed his lips firmly. "You're just so cute."

"I know." Troy winked at me, putting his head in between my boobs.

"I think I'm going to tell my mom." I said quietly. "I just don't know when."

"Do it now." Troy said as he pulled his phone out of his pocket. "I have her number."

I tried to get out from under him. "Well honey, I would but I can't breathe."

Troy let out a chuckle before turning us around so I was laying on top of him. "Sorry sweetheart."

I sat up, straddling him. I pulled out my phone and typed her number into my phone. I pressed send and let out a small sigh. I was nervous and I don't know why. Troy rubbed my thighs comfortingly. I looked down to see his reassuring smile. _"This is Katherine."_ I heard her answer.

"Hi Katherine. It's me, Gabi." I said, looking at Troy the whole time. I quickly put my phone on speakerphone and laid it on Troy's chest.

_"Oh, Gabriella. Hi, it's so nice to hear from you. How are you doing?"_ Katherine said.

"I'm doing good, great actually. How are you?" I asked.

She let out a small sigh. _"Same old. I'm working for a magazine, giving advice for interior decorations."_

"That's great. I actually called you to tell you something." I said.

_"Mm, What's that?"_ Katherine asked.

I paused, looking at Troy. He nodded his head and kissed my fingers. "I, uh, wanted to tell you that I'm getting married."

_"That is wonderful Gabriella! Last I talked to your father he said you were with a man named Sam."_ I winced. Troy laughed silently. _"Is that who you're getting married to?"_

"No, I'm getting married to somebody else." I said slowly.

She was quiet for a moment. _"Oh, Who is it then? Anybody I know?"_

Troy smiled at me. "Yeah, I'm getting married to Troy, Troy Bolton." I bit my bottom lip, waiting for her response.

_"Oh. Well, congratulations. To both of you."_ Katherine said quietly. I couldn't quite read the emotions in her voice.

"We haven't decided a set date but when we do I will send you an invitation because we want you to come." I let out a quiet breath of relief. I don't know why but it felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders. "You don't have to come, if you don't want to. I just wanted to let you know."

_"Mm, I'll see what I can do. I'm happy you decided to call."_ She said.

I licked my lips slowly. "Actually it was Troy's idea. I'm going to let you get back to whatever you were doing. I'm glad you're doing well."

_"Thank you, I'm glad you are too. You can call me anytime you need to talk to somebody. I love you Gabriella."_ She said.

"I love you too Mom." I said quietly. "Bye." I hung up the phone before putting it on the coffee table in front of us. I laid down on Troy's chest.

He rubbed my back slowly. He kissed my forehead gently, hugging me tighter to him. "I'm proud of you." I looked at him, confused. "For calling your mom. I know it wasn't easy for you."

"How is it that I don't have to even say what I'm feeling? You just automatically know." I kissed his lips gently.

He smiled at me. "I may have only spent 4 months with you before an 8 year separation but I know you Gabi. I know you, just like you know me. You know me better than I know myself." He glanced down at me then looked back up at my face. "Guess what I'm thinking right now."

I giggled quietly. This was too easy. "You are thinking about sex and pizza." I smiled at him. "In that order."

Troy chuckled and rolled us over again, connecting his lips against mine. "You were dead on." He slipped his tongue into my mouth. I put my hand on the back of his neck, holding him close to me. He pulled away slowly. "We should have a May wedding."

I raised my eyebrows. "May?" I asked. He nodded. "May 14th."

"What year?" He asked.

"Next year. Not this coming up may, but the one after." I explained.

He kissed my lips slowly. "Good plan baby."

My hands traveled along his back and I grabbed his butt firmly. "I can't wait to be your wife."

Troy smiled at me and moved a strand of hair out of my face. "And I can't wait to be your husband."


	40. And i thought i loved you then

**Gabriella's POV**

"Troy, you're not supposed to eat the whole cake." I said, looking at my fiancé who was stuffing the chocolate cake in his face. We had 3 months until the wedding. We still had the date set for the 14th of May. The wedding planning has gone really smoothly. We had to pick the cake and the flowers. I wasn't even sure I wanted flowers. I just came back from a little wedding planning break.

Troy and I took a trip to LA to see Bree, Rob and Macy last July for Macy's first birthday. We recently just went to Sacramento to see Taylor and Chad. When we told them we were getting married, they told us they were having a baby. They had a healthy baby girl in August, Malia Ashley. She was beautiful. We couldn't make it up there when she was born because Troy was in Texas for work and I had to work as well.

It seemed like everybody was having kids now. Bree, Taylor, I wondered if Troy and I would be next. Bree said she wanted another baby soon. Rob wanted another girl but she wanted a boy.

"Gabi… Gabriella." Troy nudged me, snapping me out of my reproductive thoughts. I turned to face him. "Do you want to try the chocolate?"

I nodded. "Sure, why not?" Troy handed me the fork and I picked up a small bite of cake. Chocolate was the fourth flavor we'd tried. Troy ate more than half of each. We had vanilla, chocolate, red velvet and devils food cake. I sighed. "I think we should go simple. Chocolate and vanilla. No custard because custard is gross." I rubbed my eyes. "Whipped cream, as little fondant as possible, I'm going to peel it off anyway."

Troy looked at me with a smile on his face. He had his chin propped up on his elbow, watching me. "You couldn't decide this before I ate four pieces of cake."

I giggled quietly. "You're not supposed to eat the whole cake!" I repeated. He leaned over and kissed my cheek gently. "We ready to put our order in?" Troy nodded quietly.

Troy scooted closer to me as I filled out to paper. "You look gorgeous today." He mumbled against my neck. He wrapped his arms around my waist. "I just can't keep my hands off you."

"God, what did they put in that cake?" I joked. I finished the paper I was filling out. "Get your lips off my neck, you have an order to put in."

Troy pulled away from me and chuckled. "You're so feisty today." I rolled my eyes. He got up and I handed him the paper. He got up and went up to the counter and started to pay for it.

"Hey, Dr. Montez." My head shot up and I looked at the girl standing next to me. She was one of my patients.

"Hey Kim, how are you sweetheart?" I said and she took a seat next to me.

She licked her lips and sighed. "I'm alright, I need to schedule another appointment with you. I've been having a tough time at school."

"You can always stop by the office and make an appointment. If you need anything, you can call me anytime. I'll be happy to help you." I pulled out one of my cards. I wrote my work cell number on the back. "Call me anytime Kim, really."

"Thank you Dr. Montez. You've been really helping me. That's why I haven't been in for a while." She sighed. She looked up and her body stiffened. "I should get going."

I looked up to see Troy. "Oh, Kim. This is my fiancé, Troy. You don't have to worry about him." I said to her quietly. She nodded. "Call me, okay?"

"Bye Dr. Montez." Kim got up and she walked away quickly.

"Is she alright?" Troy asked as I got up. I pushed in my chair and wrapped my arms around him. I nodded. "Let's go home."

"We have to go to the florist Troy." I reminded him and he groaned. "What?"

Troy sighed. "Do we have to have flowers?"

I nodded. "I need a bouquet. Bree is going to hold a single flower when she walks down the aisle. Liz is the flower girl. The key word- flower." I giggled quietly and I kissed his lips. "Come on Troy."

After a quick trip to the flower shop, we finally had the wedding settled. It felt so good to relax when we got home. I curled up on the couch. "Are you excited for the wedding?" Troy asked as he sat next to me.

"I am so excited." I said looking up at him. I bit my lip gently. "Troy?"

"Yeah babe?" He asked rubbing my knee gently.

"I want a baby." I said quietly.

Troy blinked at me. "You want a what?"

"A baby." I said shyly. My cheeks flushed. I don't know why I felt so embarrassed about it. Maybe it was because we hadn't really talked about having babies yet. "I'm sorry." I said quietly, pulling my knees to my chest.

Troy pulled me against him and kissed the top of my head. "You have no reason to be sorry. If you want a baby then I want a baby." He rubbed my arms. "I don't have to wear condoms anymore. Yes." He celebrated. I rolled my eyes.

"You're so weird, but that's why I'm marrying you." I kissed his lips gently. I pulled away slowly. "Do you want to start baby making?"

"You don't have to ask me twice baby." Troy said, picking me up.

* * *

**3 Months Later.**

"Suck it in Gabi!" Bree said, trying to close up my wedding dress. "Jesus, you didn't drink that much last night."

"We didn't drink at all Bree." I said rolling my eyes. "Just finish up alright?" I said sucking in.

Bree finally zipped up my dress and I put the veil in my hair. "Are you ready to go Gabi?"

"How mad would you be if I said I needed to pee?" I joked. Bree punched me in the arm. "Okay, okay. I was joking."

"You better be bitch." She said smacking my butt. "You look hot, Troy is going to pounce on you. I bet you five bucks you'll have a quickie during the reception."

I glared at her. "That's not fair because I don't have five bucks to give you and I know you're going to win." I cracked a smile and she laughed. "Where is Liz?"

"She's outside with Lucy." Bree said. She stopped to look at me again. "You look beautiful Gabriella."

I smiled at her. "Thank you Bree. I don't know if I could have made it here without you." I hugged her tightly. "I love you."

"I love you too. Now let's go get you married." She said, with a smile.

I grabbed my bouquet and we walked out of the hotel room. We were getting married at one of the biggest parks in Albuquerque. We had a lot of guests to invite. We had my family, Troy's family, some of my old classmates and co-workers, people from Troy's work, his old basketball teammates from when he played for the Bulls. It was a little overwhelming but they were happy for us.

"Gabriella." I heard from behind me. I turned around to see my mom, standing there. "Oh, Gabi. You look beautiful." She walked over to me and I saw her eyes fill up with tears.

I wrapped my arms around her and tried not to tear up already. I hadn't even made it out of the hotel. "Hey mom, I'm glad you could make it."

She put her hand on my cheek. "I wouldn't miss this for the world baby. I just wanted to see you and you look absolutely amazing. You remind me of my mom. You probably don't remember her. She passed away when you were eight. We weren't on the best of terms when she passed, I wish we were though. I would I could have told her I love her." My mom shut her eyes and let out a sigh. "I'm sorry. I just want to let you know that I'm so happy for you and I know you and Troy will be very happy and I should have supported you earlier."

I engulfed her in another hug. "I love you mom. I know you were trying to do what was best for me. I'm sorry I was so mad at you."

"You had every right Gabi." Mom straightened up. "Now you have a wedding to get to."

"Come in the limo with us. Me, you, Bree, Lucy and Liz." I said, holding her hand. "I insist."

She nodded. "Okay. I think I will."

We walked down to the limo and we piled in. Mom and Lucy chatted on the way to the park. Liz was telling Bree a story about school and other random things. I sat back and folded my arms across my stomach. I was gaining weight. I was eating normally well I have been eating a lot more. God I was getting MARRIED today.

I let out a breath as the limo stopped. The driver opened the door and everybody piled out before me. I got out slowly trying not to damage my dress. Bree helped me out and I surprisingly made out without anything going wrong. The photographer lead me away to take a couple pictures as everyone got seated.

"Ready to go baby girl?" Dad asked as he walked up to me.

"More than ready." I said with a confident smile. I walked over to him and he held his arm out. I placed my hand on his arm and he walked me to where the ceremony was and down the aisle. I smiled and saw Troy standing there smiling back at me.

Daddy gave me away and I lace my fingers in between Troy's as I stood in front of him. As the man behind us started talking, I kind of zoned out. I said all of the proper things at the appropriate times. Before I knew it I felt Troy's lips on mine and a lot of clapping. I snapped out of whatever trance I was in and wrapped my arms around his neck and slipped him the tongue. We heard a lot of wolf whistles and I pulled away slowly.

"I love you Gabi." Troy said, kissing my forehead gently.

"I love you too Mr. Bolton." I kissed his lips away before breaking away from him. We walked back down the aisle waving to people. We made it to the limo and I sat on Troy's lap. I leaned down and kissed his lips firmly. "I can't believe we're married now."

"You're stuck with me now." Troy's lips trailed down my neck slowly.

"We wouldn't have it any other way baby." I got up slowly and walked over to the driver. "Could you take the long way please?" The driver nodded before putting the barrier up in between us. I walked over to Troy and unzipped his pants.

"God baby, you're going to kill me." Troy said huskily as his hands made its way up my dress. I stroked his hardening penis quickly. I felt him push my panties to the side. I guided him into me slowly as I covered his mouth with mine. He entered me fully and I moved my hips against his quickly. His tongue trailed down my neck.

I bounced up and down slowly on top of him. Troy let out a loud groan from under me. I kissed his neck firmly traveling up to his ear. "I can't wait until tomorrow baby." Right after the reception we were getting on a plane and going to Hawaii. He hit a sensitive spot and I moaned quietly biting on his ear lobe gently. I felt my walls clinch slightly. "Oh god, Troy." I threw my head back slightly.

His lips attached to my collar bone. I started bouncing faster and grabbed on to the hair on the back of Troy's head. "Mmm." Troy groaned loudly as he reached his peak. He sent me over and my stomach clenched as I released. I put my head in his neck. "You look absolutely amazing today Mrs. Bolton."

I smiled as I got up. I fixed my underwear and Troy fixed himself. I sat next to him and kissed his swollen lips firmly. "You look very handsome husband." I licked my lips and put my legs in his lap. "And that's Dr. Bolton to you." I smirked slightly.

"Mmm, Dr. Bolton." He let out a tortured groan and he kissed up my arm slowly. "You don't know how much of a turn on it is to know I have my own personal doctor to give me sponge baths."

I let out a giggle. "You do know I'm not that kind of doctor right?"

Troy nodded. "I do, but it doesn't take 8 years of college to figure out how to give somebody a sponge bath." I burst out laughing and Troy rested his head on my stomach. "Do you think you're pregnant yet?"

I ran my fingers through his hair slowly. "I'm not sure. I don't really keep track of my period and you've been fucking me silly every night for the last couple of months… I don't know." He gave my stomach a gentle kiss over my dress. "We should find out though. I barely fit into my dress this morning."

Troy's head shot up. "Really?" He grinned and sat up. "We should find out." He lifted my legs up and crawled over to the divider. He pressed the button and the divider went down. "Excuse me, Sir. Could we take a pit stop at a drug store, please?"

"Of course, there's a CVS coming up, I'll turn right in." The driver said.

"Thank you." My husband said, before climbing back to me. He licked his lips before planting a kiss on my lips. "Did I tell you how beautiful you look today wife?"

I smiled and wrapped my arms around his waist, leaning my head on his chest. "You know I had some nights where I wondered if I found you and we got back together, would I even feel the same? Would you even feel the same? Would it be worth it?" I looked up at him. "But if I had to relive those eight years without you to be with you, and happy. I would. Every second was worth it."

Troy smiled down at me and kissed my lips firmly. "You are absolutely right baby." The limo stopped and the driver opened the door. We slid out of the limo. "We'll be right back."

I held onto Troy's hand as we ran up to the door. "Slow down! These heels are new." I said, holding up my dress with my spare hand. He just chuckled at me. We walked to the family planning section. I picked up a box.

"Jesus, how many of these are we supposed to get?" Troy asked, picking up one where you could supposedly tell the gender from your pee. "We should get one of these."

"What if I'm not even pregnant?" I said, picking up two more.

He smiled at me. 'I'll pee in it and see what color it'll turn." I giggled quietly and nodded my head. "You need three?" He asked skeptically.

I shrugged. "I don't know but I haven't peed since I woke up this morning so we better get going." I handed him the tests and he walked up to the counter with no shame.

We got congratulated by every single person in the store before we walked outside. It was kind of irritating, but nice. I kissed my husband before crawling back into the limo. Troy climbed in and put the bag on the floor. "When are you going to take them?"

"When we get there, I have to quick change. I'll take them then and hide them because I'm the only one who has the key. Then when we want to sneak away we can go up there and check." I leaned up and kissed his lips. "Does that sound okay?"

"That's fine with me baby." We relaxed as the driver finally made his way to the hotel. Troy and I got out and we went up to the room. I checked the room for anybody and went straight to the bathroom. I tried to reach for the zipper but I couldn't reach. "Door's locked." Troy said.

I walked out to him and turned around. "Unzip me please." He walked over to me and kissed along the back of my neck as he unzipped my dress.

"No bra?" Troy asked with a smirk. I climbed out of my dress and shook my head returning his smirk. Troy watched me as I hung the dress up, zipping the back of it. "Your boobs do look bigger."

I pulled out my second dress. It was way more comfortable than my wedding dress. It had pockets too. I love pockets. I ignored his comment. "I hope this one zips." I stepped into the peach colored dress and fixed my boobs. "Zip me."

"Do I have to?" Troy whined. I smiled at him and nodded. He sighed with a smile on his face. He zipped up my dress half way. I sucked my stomach in. He zipped it up a little more. "It…won't…close." Troy said, struggling.

I sucked in a deep breath. "Try now." I said breathlessly. He finally managed to zip it up. "I can barely breathe. I turned to the mirror and my cleavage was very noticeable. "Holy shit Troy!" I turned to face him.

"Damn baby. I don't even know if I should let you out the room like that." Troy bit his bottom lip. "I don't even know if I could handle seeing you all night without pouncing on you."

"Well I have to pee so I'll be right back." I walked into the bathroom with the bag of pregnancy tests. I opened them and took the three of them. I finished up and washed my hands. "God, where do I even put these?" I asked myself.

I walked out of the bathroom and Troy took the tests from me. He reached up and put the three tests on top of the TV display. "see, nobody would think of looking up there for anything."

I hid the bag in the suitcase I had then walked over to Troy. "Okay." I let out a deep breath. "We are going to have dinner, do the toasts and stuff. Then after our first dance and the father daughter dance then we can make our escape up here. Okay?"

"Got it." Troy wrapped his arms around me. "Whether you are pregnant or not, this will always be the happiest day of my life." He placed a gentle kiss on my lips. "Thank you for marrying me."

I smiled up at my husband. "Thank you for never giving up on me."

"I couldn't if I tried sweetheart." He leaned down to give me another kiss.

"Mr. and Mrs. Fucking Bolton. You better get yourselves down to the party before I come in there and kick your married asses." Bree yelled from outside, banging on the door.

"Were coming bitch!" I yelled back. "Can't I fuck my husband in peace?"

"Gabi" Troy said shyly from beside me.

"You guys are sick!" Bree yelled. "Come on I'm hungry."

I giggled quietly and Troy opened the door and I walked out, putting the key into the pocket of my dress. He followed closing the door behind us. Bree just stared down at my boobs. "I know, I know."

"Your tits are huge!" She started poking at them. "Are they real still?" Troy chuckled from behind me.

I rolled my eyes at my best friend. "Yes, they're real."

We made our way to down to the reception and sat down for dinner. As they were bringing dinner out we were doing speeches.

Chad started it off. "Okay, where to start with these two? I've known Troy forever. He is like the brother I've never had. We've been through everything together and I don't even know if I could have made it through high school without him. I remember the day that Troy and Gabriella met. It was spring break of Senior year. We were at the annual carnival East High threw. Troy had become kind of like a hermit. I knew it was affecting him that all of his friends were going away this summer and he had to stay in Albuquerque. He became a hermit. I remember running up to him telling him where all our friends were. Zeke and Jason were harassing Gabriella in the kissing booth. Troy asks who Gabriella is. I tell him the new hot girl. Sorry honey." He turned to Taylor and she just laughed and waved him off. "Then he went off to go get a hot dog and he comes back with Gabriella and a huge mustard stain on his shirt. Gabriella literally ran into him. They went on the Ferris wheel together and made out by the lake and the rest is history. If you could mold the perfect woman for Troy then you would make Gabriella. I am glad you guys are finally happy and together. I love you guys, congratulations."

Everybody clapped and Bree stood up. "Hi everybody. I'm Bree. I've known Gabriella since as long as I can remember. In junior high and elementary school we would go over to Gabi's house and watch movies and take ugly pictures like there was no tomorrow. Every body at school would try to befriend her just because they knew who her dad was. No offense love muffin but I didn't care who you were. Gabi is an amazing friend. She is fiercely loyal and she had this personality that just makes you want to be a better person. She makes me want to be more like her. When she moved to Albuquerque I was heartbroken then she called me one day saying she met a guy." I giggled quietly next to her. "And I knew from that point on she was a goner. I know Gabi and when she loves she puts her whole heart in it. I've been through it all with her. I know Troy wouldn't break her heart and I'm so happy that she's happy and that she and Troy reunited. I love you Gabi and I love you Troy. I wish you guys all the happiness in the world."

Everybody clapped again and Troy stood up this time. "I just want to say thank you everybody for coming. Half of you supported us when we were at our lowest. I am happy that you guys are here to support us at our highest. From the moment I met Gabi I knew she was different. She ran into me, got mustard all over my shirt and proceeded to talk my ear off. It wasn't annoying at all. I loved listening to her speak her mind. She is always amazing with words. I honestly can't imagine spending my life with anybody else but Gabi and now I am so glad I don't have to. I spent eight years without her and I never want to do that again. I love you Gabi so much and I look forward to waking up to you every morning and spending every night for the rest of my life with you. Through everything I will be by your side and that is exactly where I should be."

I stood up and planted a kiss on Troy's lips. He wiped the tears from my cheeks and kissed my forehead. We sat down and ate dinner. After everyone was finished I heard my dad come on the microphone. "Hello everybody, I would like to call to the dance floor. My son-in-law Mr. Troy Bolton and My baby girl Mrs. Dr. Gabriella Bolton."

I giggled quietly as Troy lead me out to the dance floor. The slow music started as I wrapped my arms around Troy. "Was this Husbands pick?" I asked him. He nodded with a grin on his face.

"Well I remember trying not stare  
The night that I first met ya  
you had me mesmerized  
And three weeks later  
in the front porch light  
Taking forty-five minutes to kiss goodnight  
I hadn't told you yet  
I thought I loved you then

Nowyou're my whole life,  
Now you're my whole world.  
I just can't believe  
the way I feel about you girl  
Like a river meets the sea,  
Stronger than it's ever been.  
We've come so far since that day  
And I thought I loved you then."

I smiled up at him in the middle of the song. I connected my lips to his. "Good choice husband." He grinned at me as the song ended. My dad swept me up and I danced with him as well. After the dance with my dad I found Troy and we slipped away unnoticed. Everybody was preoccupied with dancing. We raced up to the room.

"Is it bad that this is all I've been thinking about?" Troy said, nervously as we stood together in the elevator. I shook my head slowly as the doors opened. I ran out and walked over to the door. I opened the hotel door and sat on the bed. Troy closed the door behind him and grabbed the tests front the top of the TV. "Are you ready?"

I nodded my head nervously and he put the tests in my hand. I looked up at Troy. "I don't know why I'm scared." I said with a nervous giggle.

Troy chuckled and sat next to me on the bed. "Whatever happens I'll be here."

"I know babe." I took a deep breath. "Okay." I opened my hand and looked at each of the tests. Positive. Positive. Positive.

"What? what is it?" Troy asked looking at me.

"I'm pregnant." I said looking up at him. A huge smile broke out on his face. I threw the tests down and jumped on him. I kissed his lips firmly. "We're having a baby."

* * *

**The last chapter of Kissin in the Rain! I just want to give a quick thank you who have been reading my stories from when I first started uploading and Thank you to the ones who could have just found me yesterday. You all are amazing and i am so lucky to have you guys reading my stories. I am going to write a spin off for this! I don't know when it will be out because i just started writing, it doesn't even have a name yet. I've been working on a couple stories and some have just come to a stand still. I'm going to try to finish them without having them suck. I also started a one-shot the other day so maybe that will be done before next weekend. Anyways. Happy Labor Day and Don't forget to review :)**


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